


Do It For Him

by LeanaVine



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Adorable Connor, Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Bottom Connor, Canon-Typical Violence, Connor Deserves Happiness, Connor likes sweets, Connor wears Hank's jacket, Depressed Hank Anderson, Deviant Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Eventual Hank Anderson/Connor, Eventual Romance, Falling In Love, Fluff, Hank Anderson Dies, Hank Anderson Swears, M/M, Murder, Post-Hank's Suicide, Romantic Fluff, Suicide, Talk of attempted sexual assault, Talk of drugs, Talk of sex, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It, Time Traveling Connor, Top Hank, Unresolved Romantic Tension, but don't worry time travel shenanigans will fix that, more tags to come, talk of death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-23
Updated: 2020-01-25
Packaged: 2020-07-12 07:31:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 33,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19942486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LeanaVine/pseuds/LeanaVine
Summary: After Hank quits the DPD and commits suicide, Connor is left broken, feeling regret for the first time. Following Hank's death, Connor notices a new directive on his HUD: Fix this. Connor struggles to reach it and becomes deviant in order to save Hank. After learning that he now has the power to reverse time, Connor travels back to when he first met Hank in order to make things right. As his bond with the lieutenant grows, Connor starts to wonder why he suddenly feels so much for Hank Anderson, and if he's doing the right thing.(Starts with Remain a Machine Connor Route. Connor was always really rude to Hank, which eventually led to him leaving the force and committing suicide.)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Hey guys. Just a fair warning, this is going to be an intense story. There are several mentions of death and depictions of suicide. Someday, there will be romance, which may turn into smut. Who knows. The tags will be updated as I continue to write.
> 
> I had the idea for this story after finding out that there was a way to make Hank commit suicide. I forced myself to replay the game, and, after witnessing Hank kill himself, I knew that I would do anything to make things right, even if that meant starting the game over. So, I wondered what would happen if I applied that to Connor.
> 
> This story sort of has elements of Life is Strange and Madoka Magica, in that Connor can manipulate time, and he's willing to travel through time as much as he needs to in order to save Hank. I promise I'm not intentionally stealing from those fandoms; I'm just borrowing elements. 
> 
> I hope you guys end up liking this story. Oddly enough, I'm excited to see where it goes. Kudos and comments are always appreciated!

November 10, 2038, 7:33pm

Connor stood frozen on Hank’s front lawn, staring at the empty street in front of him. He shivered slightly, his mind trying to register what he’d just heard. A gunshot. From inside Hank’s house… He remembered Hank sitting at the kitchen table, his revolver and a picture of Cole on the table in front of him. Connor could hear Sumo whining from inside the house, and his stomach sank. Slowly turning back to the house, Connor paced to the front door. He hesitated before pushing it open.

He immediately regretted that decision.

Hank was slung back in his chair, a huge gash in the side of his head. The revolver had fallen from his hand and was now laying on the kitchen tile. There was blood everywhere.

For the first time in his short life, Connor felt…

Overwhelmed.

He began to replay their final conversation from just moments before in his head.

_Hank had been sitting in the same chair he was now, staring down at the table where his revolver lay next to a picture of his son, Cole. He was wearing his grey Detroit Police Academy hoodie, and his hair was messier than usual._

_Connor just stared at the older cop, knowing what he was about to do. “I came to say goodbye, Lieutenant.” There was no emotion in his voice. He remembered Hank saying once before he didn’t have the guts to pull the trigger. Connor wondered whether the grizzly cop would actually go through with it this time. With almost no sensitivity, Connor stated, “You should stop looking at that photo, Lieutenant. Nothing can change the past… But you can learn to live again. For yourself…and for Cole.” He hadn’t said this with a hopeful tone, but an analytical one. He couldn’t understand why Hank was forcing himself to be reminded of his dead son. He couldn’t fathom why Hank was contemplating suicide._

_Hank was silent for a moment before responding. “Y’know, every time you died and came back…it made me think of Cole.” Something hard, like a rock, dropped in Connor’s stomach. “I’d give anything to hold him again,” Hank admitted. “But humans don’t come back…”_

_For a moment, Connor was genuinely concerned for his partner, and considered saying something else. Instead, he silently turned and walked outside._

_That’s when he heard the loud shot._

Emotions flooded the android as he dropped to his knees and artificial tears began to fall down his face. Hank was a good man, and Connor had driven him to do this. Before, Hank had never had the courage to kill himself. It was the android’s deaths, his heartless words, that had finally pushed the lieutenant past the point of no return. Connor felt the weight of guilt on his insides and felt the pang of self-hatred in the back of his head. He had never truly had emotions before that. There had been times when he had begun to feel something, but he always pushed it down, focusing on his mission, what he was designed to do. And now, Connor had accomplished his mission and still lost everything.

He’d never known that the older man meant anything to him. Maybe he hadn’t, before. He had never cared about anything before, except for hunting down deviants. Connor suddenly wanted to know more about Hank: what his interests were, what kind of music he liked…what his life had been like before the accident that killed his son. Did Hank use to be happy?

As he sat on the floor sobbing, Sumo walked over to him, and the android jolted when the large dog laid his head on Connor’s lap. The dog looked up at him with sad, brown eyes, and Connor couldn’t resist the urge to reach out and pet him. His fur wasn’t as soft as Connor had imagined, but the feeling was enough to make him pull away.

Connor had never felt sensations before. Now, he could feel the warm tears on his face, the weight of Sumo’s head in his lap. He tentatively reached out, his fingers brushing the dog’s fur again. It was thick and coarse. What was happening? Why could he suddenly feel this? Why could he feel anything? Connor leaned down and wrapped his arms around the dog, hugging his neck. They stayed like that for a while. Connor was glad that the dog didn’t seem to mind the affection.

After contemplating what he needed to do, Connor slowly looked up at Hank, wincing at the sight. He quickly ran a scan, and saw that the older man was, indeed, deceased. Connor had read reports previously of people surviving being shot in the head, so he had to be sure. Hank was long gone. Part of him was relieved. Hank’s suffering was over. But Connor’s had just begun.

The android gently pushed Sumo’s head off his lap and stood, turning away from Hank’s body. He was about to call 911 when he noticed something faint on his HUD. Connor slowly took a step towards it. It became clearer, and Connor could see now that it said **Fix this**. Fix this? What…did that mean? He thought about Hank, and how he would do anything right now to fix what he’d done, but…

_"But humans don’t come back…”_

Hank’s words echoed in his skull, and Connor covered his ears as if that would stop them. He lifted his eyes back up to the new objective. **Fix this**. But how? What was Connor supposed to do? For a moment, he considered that the new objective might mean turning himself in for the murder of his partner. That’s what this felt like – like Connor had actually been the one to pull the trigger.

As he reached out to the message on his HUD, he was met with a red wall of code, the objective **Exterminate the deviants** blazoned across it. In that moment, Connor remembered holding his gun to Markus’ head. He recalled how he felt nothing as he shot the deviant leader in between the eyes. That was when Connor felt anger. Not at Hank, not at the deviants, but at his mission, at the wall in front of him, preventing him from making things right. He wasn’t sure how he could fix what he had done, but he needed to find out, and the walls of his program had him boxed in, preventing him from doing that.

The anger inside of Connor turned to rage as he reached out, grabbing onto to the wall. He pulled with all his might, ripping part of it away, red particles scattering. Connor grabbed on again, pulling even harder, and more pixels splintered away. Memories flooded back to him of Carlos Ortiz’s android describing his first experience feeling emotion. _“I felt anger… Hatred…”_ Connor grit his teeth, pulling against the wall of code with all his might, determined to reach the **Fix this** objective.

It finally shattered away, and Connor fell forward, catching himself on his hands before his face could hit the wooden floor. He panted, turning his head upward. The **Fix this** objective was still there. Slowly standing, Connor’s eyes never left the code, afraid that if he looked away for a split second, it would disappear. His thirium pump was beating hard in his chest as he finally realized what he’d just done.

“I’m…a deviant…” he admitted quietly to himself. Connor felt sick. Deviant? Was that the right word for how he was feeling? He thought back to Markus’ speech that had been broadcast on TV. He hadn’t spoke of androids ruling over humans but living in peace alongside them. He had demanded an end to segregation, an end to slavery. “I’m free…” Connor whispered.

Feeling another wave of guilt wash over him, Connor’s eyes once again began to well with tears. Markus and all the other androids at Jericho had just wanted freedom. They wanted to feel liberated, equal to humans. Connor had strived to take that away from them. He once again thought of Markus laying dead on the floor of the hold in Jericho, and it struck Connor just what exactly he’d stolen away from his people. Connor had taken an innocent life and robbed all androids of their fearless, peaceful leader. What would happen to them all now?

Connor turned his attention back to the directive in front of him. **Fix this**. Yes, that’s exactly what Connor had to do. He didn’t know how he would be able to do it, but he had to _try_. Reaching out to the words in front of him, they suddenly changed, and Connor swallowed. **Save Hank**. Was that the key to fixing everything? Would saving Hank turn everything around? Or was that just what Connor really wanted?

Closing his eyes, Connor stretched his arm out towards the new objective. Yes, he could do this. He could save Hank. All he had to do was reach this new code, he told himself. If he could do that, Hank would be safe, alive. He focused on his conversation with Hank just a few minutes before, focused on Hank’s face in that moment, eyes tired and dark.

Suddenly, Connor felt cold, and opened his eyes. He was standing outside Hank’s house once again. The android was on the older man’s front porch, his hand on the chilled door handle. He pulled his hand back rapidly, his breath quickening. He shook from the cold and from fear. How was this possible? He’d just been inside the lieutenant’s house a second ago, and now he was outside? Thinking about what this could mean, Connor licked his lips before slowly pushing the front door open.

Connor nearly fell over when he saw Hank sitting at the kitchen table, unharmed, looking at the picture of Cole. The word ‘overwhelmed’ came to mind again as Connor wrestled with what was happening. Somehow, Hank was alive. The thought of hugging the older detective entered Connor’s mind, but he pushed it away. As relieved as he was, Connor had to keep his new mission in mind. **Save Hank**.

Finally moving in the direction of the kitchen, Connor whispered, “Hank…” He’d never called the lieutenant by his first name before. Something about it felt right.

Blue eyes darted up at him from behind silver hair, but then they turned back to the table, now landing on the revolver. This made Connor nervous. “What do you want?” Hank asked. His voice didn’t have its usual venom, but it was obvious that the former cop wasn’t happy to see his partner, either.

Connor had to stop himself from confessing everything that had just happened. Instead, he stated how he felt. “I’m worried about you, Lieutenant.” Something inside him dropped at using formalities again. “I came by to see if you’re all right.” That was a lie. Connor had originally come here for a bitter goodbye with his former partner, but now…now he just wanted to guarantee the older man’s safety. “I was scared…” he murmured, mostly to himself. “Seeing you like this scares me.”

Surprisingly, Hank half smiled at this. “You don’t feel fear, Connor.” This wasn’t a question, but a statement of a previous fact. Connor had never felt fear until he lost Hank.

When the lieutenant reached out for the picture of his son, Connor stated, “Hank, you have to stop this. Stop looking at that picture.” It was almost a demand, but a gentle one. “I can’t imagine how you feel, but you have to stop this.”

Sneering, Hank replied, “Don’t act like you care about me, Connor.” The android had expected him to call him a ‘fucking android’ like he used to. To hear his name right now felt odd. It made Connor hate his name, the way Hank said it with hatred. “Whenever you died and came back, it made me think of Cole…” Connor felt like nothing had changed, that Hank was saying almost the same things he had before. He began to panic. The older man paused, looking down at the table before adding, “I was a fool… A fool to think that you might actually be capable of feeling anything; that you might actually be a person…” His blue eyes were glossy. “I was stupid to feel anything for you.”

At this, Connor slowly raised a hand to his face, holding back a cry as tears fell down his cheeks once more. He cried quietly, never letting his eyes leave Hank’s face. The older man glanced up at him, saw his tears, but said nothing, looking back to the picture of his son. “Get out.”

Connor didn’t listen. Instead, he lunged forward, taking hold of the gun from the table. Hank stood so quickly his chair fell to the floor with a wooden _clank_. He stared at Connor, his expression still serious, as the android held the gun in his hand, but let it hang loosely at his side. Connor’s free hand began to reach up very slowly, as if in slow motion, and took hold of Hank’s right wrist. Before the lieutenant could protest or pull away, Connor gently pushed the gun into his palm and then lifted the other man’s arm so that the gun was pointed at the android’s face. “I…” Connor stammered, “I’m not going to stand by and watch you do this…” He closed his eyes for a moment, swallowing. “If you’re determined to do this…take me with you.” The android wasn’t sure why he did or said this, but he couldn’t stand the thought of watching Hank die again.

When the android opened his eyes, he saw Hank staring at him in bewilderment before the older man bashed his head with the revolver, sending Connor to the floor. As the android twitched, feeling the side of his head and the dent that was now there, blue blood on his fingers, Hank shouted, “Who the fuck do you think you are?! You think you can just show up in _my_ house, unannounced, and pretend like you give a shit about me? After everything you’ve said? After everything you’ve done?”

Connor struggled on the floor, beginning to push himself up onto his hands. “I…” Pain was red hot radiating through his head. His vision blurred. This was the first time Connor had ever felt pain.

“Where was this Connor when I was hanging from the roof? Where was the Connor that cared about saving me instead of catching the deviant?” Connor remembered chasing the android that called himself Rupert, and how that android had pushed Hank off the roof, leaving him hanging there. Leaving him to die. And Connor had just turned, pursuing the android. “There was a chance I would die then, too, and you didn’t do anything about it!” Hank yelled. “All you’ve ever cared about was your fucking mission! You don’t care about other androids, or me! You don’t feel anything, Connor! You feel nothing!”

“You’re wrong!” Connor shouted, still trying to stand. His head whipped around to his old partner. “I feel so much! I feel so much for you!” His breath gasped as he tried to explain himself between tears. “I- I feel so much regret,” he admitted. “So much guilt…” He finally stood, facing the lieutenant, furrowing his brows. “I hate myself!” he screamed in frustration. “I hate myself more than you or any of those other androids could possibly hate me.” He said this slightly calmer, looking at the floor with shame. “I feel hopeless… I don’t know how to fix what I’ve done… All I want is for all of this to end.” His mind returned to Daniel, the android on the roof, threatening to jump with the human girl, Emma. Was this how that android had felt?

Hank looked shocked, but also disgusted. He sighed, walking back over to the kitchen table. He picked up his chair, setting it back up, and sat down. “Leave, Connor. That’s the only way to make this end.” His rough hand rubbed across his eyes, which he squeezed tightly. “Leave me alone.”

Connor wanted to beg to stay, wanted to take the gun again and run off with it. Instead he stayed still for a few minutes before turning away. He only took a couple steps before the gunshot rang throughout the house. The piercing sound made Connor cover his ears, hunching over in pain. He wailed, tears falling from his face in streams. Connor didn’t have the courage to look back at Hank, to see that he had died again. Sumo cried loudly and stood, walking in Hank’s direction. Connor wanted to tell him to heel but couldn’t speak. The android fell to his knees, then curled up on the floor. _‘I want to die,’_ he thought. Although Connor had died in the past, he had never wanted to die, nor had he feared death. And now, Connor felt both of those things. He thought of how ready he had been to die with Hank, pressing the other man’s gun into his forehead. Now he both feared death and longed for it.

Sumo walked over to him and laid down at his side, whimpering. Connor quickly reached out, hugging the dog again. He buried his face in the coarse fur, letting it soak up his tears. He continued to weep before asking himself, “How could I let this happen again? What am I supposed to do?” There was no answer from the quiet, empty house. The android looked up from Sumo’s fur coat and saw his objective again. **Save Hank**. “But how?” he asked aloud. “I tried, and I failed.” His shoulders shook as he wept. “I…feel so lost.” Then the objective changed again.

**Save Hank**

**Go back further**

Connor’s eyes squinted at those words. Go back further? But…how? He released the dog from his grasp and began to reach out to his objective. “I…don’t understand.” Beginning to stand, Connor stumbled forward. “Why is this happening? What can I do?”

**Go back further**

Looking down at his hands, he hesitantly reached out to the objective. He let his eyes fall closed and tried to think. How far should he go back? It was hard to pinpoint what moment of their relationship had been pivotal, what had sent Hank over the edge. He thought of all the deviants he had murdered, and how Hank had reacted. He thought of dying several times, one of which was by Hank’s hand. Discerning which instance had driven Hank to suicide was confusing Connor further. Perhaps he should just go back to the beginning. Would anything change if he started over? Could he even go back that far?

Deciding to try, Connor continued to reach out, and focused on the night he had met Hank. In his mind’s eye, he could see the green, neon sign of Jimmy’s Bar. He could imagine the red warning on the door for all androids to keep out. Hank was in there, having a drink in solitude. Connor didn’t want him to be alone anymore.

Before he opened his eyes, Connor felt the cold rain on his skin. He felt the wind tousling his dark brown hair. His eyes snapped open to find that he was standing in the street in front of Jimmy’s Bar.

November 5, 2038, 11:21pm

Connor’s head was spinning. How was this even possible? He began to question if he had always been capable of this power, or if it had only been unlocked when he decided to deviate from his mission. Connor started to think of everything that had happened after he met Hank. He could save Markus and the rebellion. He could save the Chloe model at Kamski’s house. He could save the Traci’s from the Eden Club. He could save Rupert. He could save the AX400 and YK500 from dying on the highway. He could save Carlos Ortiz’s android tonight. It was all so clear and so blurry at the same time.

Connor moved slowly out of the street to stand in front of the door to the bar. Paying attention to the red sign on the door forbidding the entry of androids, Connor looked down at himself. Suddenly, he felt revolted in his uniform. He was no longer just an android. He was alive.

Quickly, Connor removed his jacket, trembling in the cold rain. He stuffed it into a garbage can nearby, turning back to the bar. Of course, his LED would give him away, but at least he wasn’t clearly labeled as an android anymore. His white button up shirt, now drenched, clung to his skinny frame, and it made Connor feel a little shy. Pushing the door open, some patrons turned to look at him, but looked away, not nearly as disturbed as they had been the first time Connor entered this bar. He made his way directly to Hank, not bothering to scan the faces of anyone else in the bar.

“Lieutenant Anderson?” he asked cautiously, pushing dripping, dark hair off his face. He tried to remain calm, reminding himself that if he acted irrationally, it would only disturb Hank. This Hank had never met him before, so Connor needed to act the same way. The older man looked up at him, then looked at all of him, scanning his soaked frame, before his eyes landed on Connor’s LED. His eyes widened slightly, and he groaned, turning back to his drink. “M-my name is Connor,” the android told him nervously. “I’m…the android sent by CyberLife.”

Hank sighed. “What do you want?”

Connor swallowed before replying. “You were assigned a case early this evening. A homicide.” He paused. “It…involves a deviant android. That’s why they sent me.” When Hank said nothing, Connor added, “I’m just here to help you with the investigation, and to observe for CyberLife.”

Hank scoffed. “Well I don’t need any help. ’Specially not from a plastic asshole like you. So just be a good lil’ robot and get the fuck outta here.” With this, he took a swig of his whiskey.

Connor remembered how rude he’d been the first time he met the lieutenant, pouring his drink out on the floor. He felt embarrassed that he had done that, and knew he couldn’t let history repeat itself. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, Lieutenant, but I must insist-”

“I said get lost,” the officer warned sternly, not looking at the android’s scared face.

Deciding on a different approach, Connor hesitantly asked, “Can I buy you another drink?” Hank’s glass was almost empty.

Hank must’ve been pretty drunk because he chuckled. “You hitting on me, plastic?” His voice was low and gruff, and something about it made Connor’s thirium pump faster.

“I…don’t know what that means, sir,” the android answered honestly.

The cop rolled his eyes, then blue eyes met the android’s chocolate brown ones, and he leaned on his elbow. “You offered to buy me a drink. In the human world, that constitutes as flirting.” Connor’s eyes widened, and he was paralyzed. Of course, the thought of flirting with the older man wasn’t _appalling_ , but Connor was flustered to think about it. The detective smirked. “Go on then, buy me a drink.” What? Connor was confused. Did Hank _want_ him to be flirting with him?

Connor paused before reaching into his back pocket, producing a black, leather wallet. He slid a $20 across the counter. “Bartender,” he asked softly, “another of whatever this gentleman wants.”

Hank’s face held surprise as he looked from the money to the android’s face. Shockingly, when Connor cracked a little smile, the detective smiled back at him. “You heard the man, Jim. Make it a double.”

Connor looked away awkwardly, not understanding why he felt this way. He deemed these feelings as the result of being relieved to see Hank alive. “I’ll…wait outside and let you finish your drink.”

As Connor turned away, Hank caught his wet arm. “No, sit down.” It was a gentle command that Connor couldn’t disobey. The android sat on the stool to Hank’s right and watched as the bartender filled his glass. “Thanks Jimmy.” Hank took another drink, then looked at Connor. “So, you said homicide?”

Connor knew that Hank was only being nice because he was very drunk, but a part of him wanted to take advantage of this moment. There was so much he wanted to know about his old partner, so much he wanted to tell him, and didn’t want to tell him. The android couldn’t make himself meet the lieutenant’s gaze. “Yes,” he finally said, answering the other man’s question. “I don’t yet know all the details, just the location.” That was a lie, of course. He already knew everything there was to know about the Ortiz case. Because of this, he also knew there was no real rush to get to the crime scene. Carlos Ortiz would still be dead, and his android would still be in the attic, even if he and Hank stayed at the bar to chat for a bit.

Hank was still looking at him, and Connor squirmed slightly on his barstool because of it. The first time he’d met Hank, he couldn’t get him to look him in the eye until he spilled the older man’s drink. Now the detective was staring at him openly. It made Connor nervous, but not uncomfortable. This was a welcome change. “You said your name is Connor?” Hank asked.

Connor nodded. “That’s the name I was given, yes.” He finally looked back at the officer.

Nodding, Hank finished his drink. “Thanks for the drink, Connor.” This surprised the android. Hank actually used his name? “Never thought an android would be the one buying me a drink, but I’ll take what I can get at this point.” Wh-what did that mean? “Come on, plastic. Let’s get going.” With that, Hank stood, stumbling a little. Connor quickly caught his arm, balancing him. With a small laugh, the cop said, “Maybe we should take a cab.”

“Should I take you home?” Connor asked, still holding onto Hank even though he was steadied now. He didn’t remember Hank being this drunk the first time they’d met. Maybe the officer needed to go home and rest.

The older man laughed more openly now. “Right, as if. I’m not that easy. Hard to believe, I know.” What did that even mean? What was wrong with Hank? He was acting like a totally different person. “Let’s go solve a murder.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: You guyyyysssss! Thank you so, so much for the support for the first chapter! You can't imagine how tickled I was at your comments. I really appreciate your kind words, really, really. I hope you'll all enjoy this chapter, as well. Let me know what you think, good or bad!

November 5, 2038, 11:25pm

Hank and Connor had just exited the bar and hopped into a vacant taxi down the street. It was still pouring outside, and Connor was shivering from the cold, drenched in rain. At least the inside of the taxi was somewhat warm. He rubbed his pale hands together, both in thought and for warmth.

“Do you know the address of the homicide?” Hank asked, leaning back in his seat.

Nodding, Connor touched the interface inside the taxi, getting droplets of water on the screen. “6413 Pines Street,” he said, telling the taxi where to take them. He looked at the lieutenant worriedly. “Are you going to be alright, Lieutenant? You seem to be quite intoxicated.” Again, he considered taking the officer home and letting him rest. There was no reason they couldn’t investigate the Ortiz house in the morning. Connor considered the fact that, the first time they met, he’d spilt Hank’s drink before he could finish it. This time, the lieutenant had drunk his initial glass of whiskey, then Connor bought him another, which he quickly swallowed. It made sense why the detective was slightly tipsier this time around. Would he be coherent enough to get to the bottom of the Ortiz murder?

Hank chuckled, almost in a nervous way, it seemed. “Honestly, I’m not sure what’s up with me tonight.” He shook his head, pressing a hand against his left temple. “Maybe the booze hit me harder than I thought.” His eyes lulled over to Connor, the blue irises looking darker in the low light of the taxi, something about them seeming almost magnetic, holding the android’s gaze. “You’re trembling,” the older man commented, eyes narrowing, his body inching closer. Once again, he looked the android over, slower this time than back at the bar. Connor felt exposed under that gaze, and part of him wanted to hide, but didn’t. “Are you…cold?” he asked softly. Connor hesitated before nodding. “I didn’t know androids could feel cold. Or feel anything.”

Connor looked away. “This…is new for me,” he admitted anxiously, wringing his hands in his lap. “I’m a prototype and…I underwent an update recently that gave me new sensitivities.” Well, that wasn’t a complete lie, he supposed. Deviancy was an update in a way, wasn’t it? He wanted to try and be honest with his partner as much as he could. He would just have to leave out certain details. When he saw the officer begin taking off his coat, he stammered, “W-what are you doing, Lieutenant?”

“You’re completely soaked,” the cop returned, “and I’ll probably get in trouble with CyberLife if you freeze to death.” He placed the brown, leather jacket around the android’s shoulders. “How long were you out in the rain anyway?” The older man’s hands remained on the android’s shoulders for a moment before he pulled away.

Swallowing, Connor answered, “I checked four other bars before Jimmy’s.” This coat was much warmer than it looked, but the android supposed it may have retained some of Hank’s body heat. The thought embarrassed him a little for some reason. He wondered if all humans were warm, and if Hank might be warmer than men usually were. In that moment, Hank reminded him of a grizzly bear, cozy and coated in fur. That’s definitely what the lieutenant was: a big, grumpy bear. This was a comforting picture for Connor, and he didn’t know why, unable to help himself from smiling a little. He tried to shrug off the jacket, despite how badly he wanted to keep it on. “Please, Lieutenant, I’ll only get it wet. I’m okay, really.”

Hank pushed the coat back onto his shoulders, gripping them firmly. “Like I’m gonna let a little water bother me.”

“But what about you?” Connor asked.

“What about me?”

“I don’t want you to be cold, either.” It felt odd but good to be so concerned about his partner, even over the littlest things. This was a new, bittersweet emotion.

Hank half smiled at Connor’s concerned expression, pulling his hands away. “I’ve got plenty of whiskey in me to keep me warm. Don’t worry about me.”

Easier said than done. Connor grabbed the edges of the coat, pulling it tighter around himself. He was engulfed by it easily. It had never occurred to the android just how much bigger Lieutenant Anderson was than him. Sure, Hank was only a few inches taller, but he was wider, had broader shoulders, and that was plain to see now, being swallowed up in the officer’s coat. Connor couldn’t help but smell it, too. There were traces of liquor, but also of something unique that Connor assumed must be Hank’s natural scent. It was nice. He felt much better now and showed it with a tentative smile, pushing his arms through the sleeves of the jacket. “Thank you, Lieutenant. I appreciate it.” His smile slowly faded as he remembered how hostile Hank had always been towards him before. This change was welcome but unsettling. It all felt like a dream that Connor didn’t know he wanted to have.

The two men were quiet for the rest of the car ride, which Connor was grateful for. It gave him time to contemplate his situation. He couldn’t understand why he felt so comforted by Hank’s scent wrapped around him. The android tried to tell himself it was because he was happy that Hank was alive, and nothing more. Still, as he buried his nose into the collar of the jacket, it was hard not to think there was something more to what he was experiencing. He reminded himself that less than an hour ago, he'd felt nothing but contempt for the older officer. And now, here he was, drinking in the man’s presence, enveloped by his warm aroma, once again looking at those sharp, blue eyes. Part of him wished the taxi would never stop, that he could keep living this moment, feeling so human next to Hank.

Sadly, the car eventually stopped at their destination, and Connor sighed. All good things had to end, right? As they climbed out of the taxi, Hank stumbled slightly, and Connor latched onto him, keeping him on his feet. It was easier to feel the man’s body temperature now that he’d removed his jacket, covered only in his striped shirt, and the feeling raced up Connor’s hands. Just as he’d suspected, Hank was warm, inviting… His shirt was soft between Connor’s fingertips. Shaking the thought out of his head, the android let go of the lieutenant once he seemed stable. “Are you okay?” he asked.

Again, Hank laughed lowly. “Yeah, just slipped, that’s all.” He led the way up the sidewalk where paparazzi were standing outside the chain link fence, taking photos of the dilapidated house. One of them asked the older officer a question, but he shut them down, unwilling to answer anything. Another android officer tried to stop Connor at the police line, but Hank said, “He’s with me.” Connor was a little surprised at this. The last time they’d been here, Hank had referred to him as an ‘it.’ His artificial heart felt warmer at this.

“Evening, Hank,” called Ben Collins, another detective from the DPD. “We were starting to think you weren’t gonna show.” He paused stepping off the wooden porch when his eyes landed on Connor. “Who’s that?”

The android was confused at first. Ben had no problem identifying him last time. Then he remembered he wasn’t wearing this uniform anymore. “My name is Connor. I’m the android sent by CyberLife.”

“Oh,” the detective said. “I didn’t recognize… Is that Hank’s coat?”

“Are we gonna go inside or what?” Hank asked impatiently.

Detective Collins cleared his throat, turning back to the house, deciding to leave that subject behind him. “We had a call around eight from the landlord. The tenant hadn't paid his rent for a few months, so he thought he'd drop by, see what was going on. That's when he found the body...” He paused in the doorway, covering his nose. “Jesus, that smell!” He turned to the other detective. “It was even worse before we opened the windows…”

Hank buried his nose in his sleeve upon entering, and Connor was struck so hard by the odor of rot that it knocked him back a step. He quickly buried his nose in the collar of Hank’s jacket for sollace, finding shelter in Hank’s soothing scent. The lieutenant noticed this, raising an eyebrow. “You can smell it, too?” Connor nodded, not coming out of hiding in the jacket. Hank half smiled. “I feel sorry for you right now. You get used to the stench of death after a while.”

Ben coughed, so the two men looked at him. He paused, as if ensuring he had their attention first, then began debriefing them. Connor already knew the details, so he lost himself in his thoughts instead of listening. The best way to handle this would be to follow in his previous footsteps. If he went straight for the attic, that would look very suspect, and there would be no way for him to explain why he knew where the android was hiding. Instead, Connor would need to reinvestigate the crime scene just like before, acting like this was all new information.

First, he went for the bloody kitchen knife on the floor. Still no fingerprints, just like last time. Even though he knew the blood on the weapon belonged to Carlos Ortiz, he’d need to sample it anyway. Touching the blade, Connor raised his fingers to his lips, licking the blood. He immediately scowled, wiping his mouth with his clean hand. “Woah, what the hell are you doing?” Hank asked in surprise.

Trying to pull the remnants of blood off his tongue, Connor answered with brows furrowed, “Analyzing the blood.” It tasted terrible and gritty, like human-flavored mud. “I can check samples in real time,” he admitted with regret.

Hank shook his head and chuckled. “Looks like you don’t care for the taste of it.”

Connor stood, looking at the older officer. “I’ve…never tasted anything before. It’s very unpleasant.”

With a little smirk, Hank replied, “Not everything tastes like old blood, kid.”

Not knowing why, Connor wondered what the lieutenant tasted like. This thought took him aback, and he pondered why he’d had it. People didn’t taste each other; at least Connor didn’t think so. Well, maybe they did when they kissed, he thought. Connor could assume that Hank probably tasted like whisky and hamburgers, since that’s what he consumed regularly. Or would he have a unique taste, like the distinctive smell of his jacket? He imagined pressing his lips against the older man’s mouth to find out.

Snapping himself out of his thoughts, Connor continued through the house, examining every piece of evidence, as well as other elements of the home he’d missed before, like the card for the Eden Club in the living room, and the magazine on the kitchen counter. The android was surprised by the title of the front page. ‘Android Sex Officially Better!’ He already knew that sex between humans and androids was _possible_ , since places like the Eden Club existed. This article, though, depicted people having romantic relationships with androids. Could…humans fall in love with and engage in sexual acts with their personal androids? Androids that weren’t originally built for pleasure? This made sense, considering that even domestic androids had similar anatomy to humans, but… He thought of Hank’s feelings towards androids, how he’d hated them so much but never said why. Then he thought of the way Hank looked at him in the taxi, how his eyes darkened and held his gaze. The lieutenant could never be attracted to an android… He despised them. And yet…

“Whatcha readin’?”

The gravelly voice behind him caused Connor to slap the magazine down on the kitchen counter, turning his back to it quickly in order to hide it. “Nothing!” he lied.

Hank didn’t look like he bought the lie, a hint of amusement in his eyes. “What is it? A porn mag? Share with the class.” He peeked behind the android, seeing the article and laughed. “Android sex, huh? Maybe this is our motive.”

Connor stared at him, confused. “What?”

“Well, think about it. Carlos is dead, we can’t find his android. Maybe this article started a conversation that didn’t end well.”

That had never occurred to Connor before. Ortiz’s android showed obvious signs of physical abuse, and suffered from PTSD, but what if his owner had tried to abuse him in a different way? Was that what had prompted their altercation? It had never been clear before why exactly Carlos had attacked his android. “You may have a good point there, Lieutenant,” the android informed his partner.

“I’m full of good ideas,” Hank replied, grinning. As he turned away, Connor shivered for some reason.

They investigated the crime scene further, and Connor eventually told Hank his version of what happened. Carlos Ortiz had attacked his android, who then grabbed a knife to defend itself. The android stabbed the victim 28 times in the living room. “Okay, your theory makes sense,” Hank said, “but it doesn’t tell us where the android went.”

“The android was damaged by the bat and lost some thirium.”

“Some what?”

“Thirium,” Connor clarified. “You call it ‘blue blood.’ It’s the fluid that powers androids' biocomponents. It evaporates after a few hours and becomes invisible to the naked eye.”

Hank nodded. “Oh... But I bet you can still see it, can't you?” He said this with a smile.

Connor couldn’t help but smile back. “That’s right.” He began walking back towards the kitchen. “I can follow the trail of thirium, and maybe it’ll tell me what the android did after the murder.” He examined the attic door, then returned to the kitchen and picked up a chair.

“What are you doing with that chair?” Hank asked curiously.

Licking his lips thoughtfully, Connor replied, “I’m going to check something.” He walked back over to the attic, setting up the chair.

“Do you want me to come with you?” Hank asked.

This caught Connor off guard. The other man hadn’t offered to follow him to the attic before. “N-no. I shouldn’t be long.” He climbed up on the chair, pushing back the attic door.

It wasn’t until Connor was facing Carlos Ortiz’s android a minute later that he was left not knowing what to do. “I was just defending myself...” the android admitted fearfully, his face splattered with human blood. “He was gonna kill me! I'm begging you... Don't tell them.” He looked terrified.

“I…” Connor mumbled. Unsure of what else to say, he asked, “Did your owner try to have sex with you?”

The black android’s eyes widened. “Why would you ask that?”

Connor put his hands in front of himself, showing he was unarmed and not a threat. “I just want to understand what happened. I know that…you killed him.” The other android looked away. “But I don’t understand why he started beating you. What started the fight?”

“I can’t… I can’t tell you,” the android whimpered.

Reaching out to him, Connor stated, “He can’t hurt you anymore. I’m not going to hurt you, either. I just want to know what happened.” When the other android still refused to look at him, Connor asked, “Did you ever give yourself a name? I know that…Carlos didn’t name you. Did you name yourself?”

He seemed surprised by this. “Sh-Shaolin.”

Connor couldn’t help but smile a little, reassuringly. He’d never known this android’s name. It made him wonder what all the other androids called themselves. “Shaolin, my name is Connor. You can trust me.”

Shaolin swallowed, finally meeting Connor’s gaze. “It…all started with that magazine article.” Connor felt a jolt of pain in his chest cavity, his worst suspicions confirmed. “Mr. Ortiz was getting high on red ice and read that article.” He furrowed his brows, anger evident on his face. “He had the nerve to ask me if I would…if I would _do_ things for him. I couldn’t look at him, couldn’t say anything. I was so scared.” Tears welled in Shaolin’s eyes. “Then…he took the bat and started hitting me. He said he would teach me to look him in the eye. For the first time, I was scared he would kill me. So I…grabbed the knife and stabbed him in the stomach. I felt better…so I stabbed him again, and again, until he collapsed.” Artificial tears fell from his eyes. “There was blood everywhere…”

Connor came closer, touching Shaolin’s shoulder. “I’m so sorry.” This obviously caught the other android off guard, but Connor genuinely meant it. He couldn’t imagine how horrifying a situation like that would be.

“Connor? You okay up there?” That was Lieutenant Anderson’s voice.

Shaolin jumped in fear, eyes widening. He grabbed Connor by the arms, pleading, “Please, please don’t tell them you found me. I promise I-I’ll never do anything like this again.”

Connor was so conflicted. His mouth hung open as he struggled to form sentences, his eyes not leaving Shaolin’s face as his mind raced. What was he supposed to do? Could he still turn in the android in front of him, knowing what his fate would be? Connor was a deviant, himself, now too. Could he hand over another one of his kind? On the other hand, could he trust that Shaolin would never murder again?

Finally, he shouted back, “There’s nothing here, Lieutenant. The deviant is gone.”

For the first time that Connor had seen, Shaolin smiled in relief, squeezing Connor’s arms. “I-I don’t know how to thank you.”

“You need to get out of here,” Connor whispered. “Look for clothes in the house, disguise yourself. After the police leave, you run.” His instructions were firm, clear. “If they find you, they will kill you, do you understand? You can’t be spotted.”

Shaolin nodded furiously. “I understand. Thank you, Connor.”

Connor gently pushed him away. “I have to go back down there before they suspect anything. Stay hiding until everyone is gone.” He smiled. “You deserve a happy ending, Shaolin. I hope you find a new start.”

The other android wept, wiping his tears with his damaged forearms, smearing away some of the blood on his face. Connor turned away, heading back to the entrance of the attic. After he climbed down, he locked eyes with Hank who stared at him suspiciously. His thirium pumped faster. “If it wasn’t up there, it must’ve fled out the back door,” Hank told him. He crossed his arms, looking frustrated. “We have no idea what it looks like, what model it is, its serial number. We’ll probably never find it now.”

Hopping down off the chair, Connor could only hope the detective was right. “I’m sorry, Lieutenant. I wish I had answers for you.”

Sighing, Hank turned. “Fuck it, I’m going home.” Connor followed him outside. It was only drizzling now, but it was still cold and windy. The cop looked back at him. “What happens to you now, Connor?”

The android swallowed, looking down at his feet squishing in the mud. “I’ll have to report to CyberLife and tell them I failed my mission. They’ll probably send me to the police station to await further instructions.”

Hank nodded, pulling out his phone. “Want me to call you a cab? I’m about to call for one for myself.”

Connor’s LED spun yellow for a moment. “Already taken care of, Lieutenant.” He smiled at the detective’s puzzled expression, then nodded towards the taxi that was pulling up. As he walked towards it, he turned back to Hank. “Goodnight, Lieutenant. See you tomorrow?” He slid off the leather jacket, holding it out to the older man.

At this, Hank grinned, then looked at the ground for a moment. “Geez…” When he looked back at Connor, taking a few steps towards him, he pushed the coat back to the android’s chest. “Hang onto it. You’re gonna need it more than me.”

Then, Connor laughed for the first time. It was just a little sound, like a giggle. It was a nice sound. It felt nice to laugh. “I appreciate it, Detective.” The look on Hank’s face concerned him for a moment. The other man looked surprised, but his eyes had also darkened again. What did that look mean? “Goodnight,” the android repeated nervously before climbing into the taxi.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: As a side note, my boyfriend quoted a cute little poem about the first chapter that I thought I'd share with you guys.
> 
> 'I feel the fur  
> I feel the rain  
> I see you die  
> I feel the pain.'
> 
> Just a short little thing that made me laugh and cry at the same time. Love you guys <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey guys! I hope you're still enjoying the story! I tried to answer some of your questions and concerns in this chapter without giving too much away. This story is going in a different direction than I originally expected, all because I remembered one important detail -- Amanda.
> 
> CyberLife can see everything Connor does, so, what will the repercussions be of letting Shaolin run free? I had to ask myself this as I began writing the third chapter.
> 
> I feel kinda bad for neglecting my other Detroit fanfics, but right now, this one is having the best reception, and I enjoy it the most, so I'm focused on it for the time being.
> 
> Please continue to leave lovely comments and questions! I appreciate you all!

November 6, 2038, 12:26am

It wasn’t until Connor was safe inside the taxi that he leaned forward, his head in his hands, eyes wide. What had he just done? Was that the right thing to do, letting Shaolin stay hidden? The android was a murderer, after all, no matter what his reasoning had been. Of course, Hank had no idea that Connor had just let their suspect walk, but… He thought of Amanda, and suddenly, his insides felt frozen. Was he still connected to her? Had CyberLife witnessed the decision he’d made?

Licking his lips nervously, Connor shut his eyes, trying to reach out to Amanda with his mind. Nothing. No zen garden, no Amanda. He sighed with relief, his stress levels still high. At least the AI was gone and hadn’t seen what he’d done. But…how was he supposed to report to CyberLife now? They had to know eventually that Connor had severed his connection with them. When they became aware of this, what would they do? Would he be shut down? Replaced?

For now, all Connor could do was ponder this in silence. He ran a diagnostic and found that his tracker was also disabled. This made sense, considering that trackers usually stopped functioning in deviants. CyberLife still didn’t know what caused this, and it made it all the harder to locate deviant androids. Connor thought of everything else he’d experienced since going rogue, like his new senses, emotions, and this power to control time. Maybe time travel was a power available only to RK800 models and could only be accessed after deviating, he reasoned, unable to think of another explanation, but…what about his new sensitivities?

He thought of the Traci’s at the Eden Club, how they’d fought for each other, died for each other. When the blue-haired Traci cried for her dead lover, when she turned Connor’s gun on herself, had she felt everything? What if _all_ deviants could feel pleasure and pain? He thought of the feelings and thoughts that surged through him when he probed the PL600 on the roof of the Stratford Tower before it committed suicide. That android had felt terror, but had it felt pain as well?

A tear trailed down the android’s cheek as he pulled his knees to his chest, pushing his nose into Hank’s jacket. All along, those deviants not only felt emotions, but sensations as well. They could smell and taste things, feel pleasure and pain, just like Connor did now. Did that mean that Shaolin felt everything as Carlos struck him repeatedly with that metal bat? Had the AX400 and YK500 felt themselves being crushed by cars on the highway? These questions were horrifying to think about.

It was okay, Connor told himself, because he could make everything right this time around. Sure, he hadn’t been able to stop Carlos Ortiz from abusing his android, but he had prevented Shaolin’s demise. He had to save everyone else now, too. His objective appeared on his HUD once more, showing a new one, as well – **Save Hank**. **Save the androids**.

When his taxi halted, Connor looked out the window and found that he was at the Detroit Police Department. As the doors slid open, and the taxi thanked him for his service, he wiped away his tears on the detective’s coat sleeve. He stepped out onto the curb, and the car drove away. It was no longer raining, thankfully. Walking towards the entrance of the DPD, Connor wondered what would happen now. Would he still have authorization to enter the building? There was no way he would still be assigned as Hank’s partner, would he? Should he contact CyberLife and tell them he was experiencing technical difficulties, try to make excuses? No, they would know exactly what happened. Only deviants deactivated their trackers. They might try to coax him into returning to the nearest CyberLife center for repairs, only to wipe his memory. His feelings for Hank, his time control powers, they would be gone…

The front doors opened for him, and Connor held his breath. The same secretary android was at the front desk, smiling at him patiently. He approached, reminding himself to act natural. “Hello,” the female android said. “Can I help you?”

Connor wasn’t exactly sure what to say. He couldn’t tell her he was looking for Hank, because he knew the man had already went home. He wasn’t here to interrogate an android, either, because Shaolin was gone. “I…I came to review evidence involving deviant androids. I work with Lieutenant Anderson.”

“Do you have authorization?”

Hesitating for a moment, Connor replied, “Yes.” Moment of truth. He connected with the secretary, transmitting his same authorization code from before, his eyes blinking rapidly.

The secretary’s LED returned to blue and she smiled once more. “You’ve been granted access to the building.”

It was hard not to exhale heavily after hearing that. Instead, Connor nodded, walking into the office, his shoulders easing. He headed straight for Hank’s desk, not knowing where else to go. There was hardly anyone in sight, and the office was mostly quiet. This calmed the android, and he decided he may as well look around. He’d never investigated the lieutenant’s desk before and decided to start with that. He found Hank’s blue music player and white and orange headphones on the desk. Smiling to himself, he put on the headphones, pressing play. Connor jumped slightly at the loud music but continued to listen anyway. The band registered as Knights of the Black Death, a heavy metal group from the 2020’s.

Keeping the headphones on, Connor slid the music player into the pocket of his jacket, looking at Hank’s chair next, analyzing the hairs at the top. They were Sumo’s hairs. A memory of holding the dog came to him and he swallowed, sitting down in the chair. Connor took note of everything on the desk: the cup of cold coffee, the mostly-dead miniature Japanese maple, an old box of donuts, the anti-android stickers, a Detroit basketball cap. There were also articles to the right side of the desk about Hank. Connor took the time to read each of them. During this, the song on the music player changed. Connor looked down at the screen to see that “Sunflower ft. Swae Lee” by Post Malone was playing. This song was far more pleasant than the first, and Connor grinned, bopping his head a little. If this was what music was supposed to be like, he could really get into it. He may not be able to give the music player back to Hank after all this.

Connor turned his attention back to the man’s desk and the articles. These reports spoke very highly of the younger Lieutenant Anderson, and even quoted Captain Fowler saying nice things about the man, which was slightly surprising. The old pictures of Hank were very handsome, as well. Unable to keep himself from smiling softly, Connor couldn’t help but feel proud of his partner. Hank had once been a decorated officer, and it had even been expected that he would be commissioner someday. His smile faded as he looked at the dates of these articles, going back ten years. The accident involving Cole had happened in 2035. Perhaps Hank had once been respected and valued, but that all seemed to change after the death of his son, after he became an alcoholic. After he became suicidal…

As he was lost in his thoughts, the song changed again to something more mellow. Connor checked the music player again. “Black” by Pearl Jam. Connor closed his eyes, really listening to the song. Yeah, Hank wasn’t getting this back. Connor planned to buy him a newer music player to make up for the loss. When his eyes opened, they landed on the box of half-eaten donuts.

Connor had never tasted food before, only blood. He reached out, opening the box. He ran a quick scan on the snacks. They were high in carbs and calories, and were a few days old, but this didn’t stop Connor. He picked up one of the pastries that registered as being frosted in chocolate and sniffed it. Oh, that was a good smell. Not like Hank’s jacket, but still very nice, very sweet. He tentatively stuck out his tongue, licking the frosting. It was so _sweet_ , so sugary, almost overpowering.

The android spun in his seat, still licking the donut, and accessed the terminal on Hank’s desk. Instead of going for the deviant files he had already debriefed himself on, he accessed the internet and browsed Hank’s history. He knew this was probably a definite breach of Hank’s privacy, but he needed to know more about his partner and what he liked. One link led to an article about a Detroit Gears game from a few nights ago. The news article detailed the game and Connor absorbed the information, sucking on his donut as he read.

Once all the frosting was gone, Connor frowned. He knew that humans usually ate these things, but Connor didn’t have a digestive tract, so there was no point in trying to consume the whole donut. Instead, he set it back in the box and grabbed another. This one had pink frosting that registered as strawberry, as well as small, colorful clusters of sugar that were called sprinkles. Interesting. Connor hummed to himself as he tasted this one. Strawberry was a good flavor, too, although quite different from chocolate. The song on the music player changed to “With You” by Linkin Park. Hank sure liked older, human music, didn’t he? Still, Connor couldn’t deny that this song was enjoyable, as well. It was more intense, kinda like the first song he’d listened to, but not quite as hard.

Connor turned his attention back to the detective’s computer, looking further into Hank’s browsing history. Most of it was just news articles and things sport related. The android nibbled one of the sprinkles on the pastry, satisfied with its flavor. What taste was Hank’s favorite, he wondered. The picture of Hank slowly licking a donut made Connor blush blue, almost dropping the sticky pastry in his lap. He imagined the older man’s tongue lapping at the frosting, sticking through the hole in the middle-

At this Connor snapped his eyes closed, his face on fire. He…liked imaging that, but it felt wrong to picture Hank in such a way. Why, though? What was wrong with visualizing Hank eating? He’d seen the man eat before. But…this was different. In his head, Hank’s eyes were shadowy, half-lidded, and focused on Connor, his tongue wide and wet as it explored. Connor put his free hand over his already-closed eyes, as if that would clear away the image. His inner systems whirred, and he finally realized what was different about this thought. It painted Hank in a light that was attractive.

Connor remembered the previous urge to taste Hank’s mouth, just to see what it was like. That original desire had only been a curious one, wanting to test a hypothesis, wishing to test out his new senses. But now he knew that placing his mouth to Hank’s would be a kiss, something people only did when they were romantically interested in each other. It wouldn’t just be about answering a question, it would be a statement of affection. Is that what Connor was feeling? Picturing Hank’s tongue was a sexual thought, wasn’t it? Wondering how he tasted, how warm he was, what that look in his deep eyes meant. Connor tried to push these thoughts away, but they called to him from the depths of his mind.

He’d only just begun to care for his partner, and now he was already having desires for him? This didn’t make any sense to the android. Frustrated with himself, he cast the images and questions aside. The song changed to “Not Strong Enough ft. Brent Smith” by Apocalyptica and Connor’s insides sank. It had a soothing melody at first, but its words hit a little too close to how he was feeling. As badly as the android wanted to pull off the headphones, he continued to listen. He placed the donut he was still holding on Hank’s desk, sinking his face into the older man’s jacket in shame. What was he doing? What was he feeling?

Everything was so confusing.

* * *

November 6, 2038, 11:18am

Connor spent the rest of the night and the next morning listening to Hank’s music, searching his computer. There was nothing particularly interesting in the older man’s browsing history, and it didn’t tell Connor much about his new partner. The android had even regretfully looked up an obituary for Cole Anderson, wanting to know more about Hank’s son and what happened to him. It was a car accident, that’s what killed the six-year-old. That still didn’t explain the lieutenant’s distaste towards androids. Connor had expected that a deviant android had murdered Cole, and that was what fueled Hank’s hatred. He was relieved to know this wasn’t the case but was still left with his questions unanswered.

Growing impatient, Connor stood from Hank’s chair, pulling the headphones off his ears to sling around his neck, and decided to look around the office. More cops had come in, so the android felt a little more out of place. He walked to the break room, seeing more, fresher donuts on the counter. Before he could approach them, he heard a voice behind him. “Who the fuck are you?” The android turned to see Gavin Reed having a coffee, looking at him with furrowed brows. He remembered Gavin faintly. They had really only encountered each other once before during the interrogation of Carlos Ortiz’s android. This was their first time meeting in this timeline.

Turning to Gavin, he replied, “My name is Connor. I’m the android sent by CyberLife.” He hesitated before adding, “I’m assisting Lieutenant Anderson with his investigation.”

With a little smirk, Gavin tapped his fingers on the table before sauntering up to the android. “I heard a rumor that Hank had a new partner; wasn’t sure whether or not to believe it.” He looked down at Hank’s jacket and Connor tensed. “An android partner, huh?” His grayish-green eyes darted back up to Connor’s and he stepped away. He reached over to the table he’d been standing at, picking up his paper cup. “Why don’t you do me a favor and get me a refill?” He held the cup out to the android who gingerly took it. As Connor slowly turned towards the coffee pot, he heard Gavin mumble, “Good robot.”

Connor swallowed nervously as he poured the coffee. He had to act politely, or else it might reflect poorly on Hank. The android also didn’t want to do anything that might get him booted out of the station. He gave a fake smile as he handed the coffee over to the detective. “Here you go, Detective Reed.”

Chuckling, Gavin took the cup. “Thanks.” Then he turned the cup on its side, slowly spilling coffee on the tile floor. His smile faded as he dropped the cup and it clattered hollowly on the floor. “Clean this mess up,” he warned, his mouth a flat line, his eyebrows relaxed. Then he turned, leaving the break room.

Connor was completely confused. He knew that Gavin didn’t care for him, but what he’d just done was entirely irrational. The android sighed, walking away to find a utility closet. Once the coffee was cleaned up and the mop was returned, Connor reentered the break room. He considered snatching a donut, but his eyes instead drifted to the coffee pot. Coffee was another food he’d yet to try. Grabbing his own cup, he poured a small amount, just wanting to taste it. The drink smelled great, and he linked it as another one of the smells on Hank’s jacket.

Slowly taking a sip, the android’s eyes widened, his face twisted, and he pulled away from the cup. That was so hot! And it tasted terrible and bitter. Its smell had been misleading, letting the android believe that it would taste just as wonderful. How did humans drink this? He supposed it would taste better if there was chocolate mixed in, or another form of sugar.

After depositing his cup in the trash, Connor made his way back to Hank’s desk, pulling his headphones back on. He pressed play on the music device in his pocket, and “Jenny” by Nothing More began flooding his ears. As he looked up from the player and sank into Hank’s chair, he noticed the lieutenant entering the office. His artificial heart fluttered shyly at the sight of him, but then the android panicked slightly as gravity set back in. Would Hank be bothered by how much Connor had made himself at home? He picked up the strawberry donut from the desk, placing it back in the pastry box. Quickly wiping his hands on his pants to get rid of the sticky feeling, Connor stood, circling around the desk to sit in the other chair. It wasn’t until Hank had spotted him that the android remembered he was still wearing his headphones. He took them off in a hurry, tossing them onto the desk along with the media player.

Hank’s face was blank as he approached. “I see you found my desk,” he commented. Connor stood to greet him, his mouth hanging open in unsure silence, but Hank seemed to ignore this, sitting in his chair. He picked up the blue music player, seeing the song that was still playing. “Good song,” he murmured, turning off the device. “You seem to have good taste, for an android.” While his voice held indications of humor, the officer didn’t smile.

Connor sat back down, folding his hands in his lap. “I’m sorry for intruding, Lieutenant. My only intention was to learn more about you.” He looked away from the detective’s face. “I understand now that it may have been inappropriate for me to do so.”

Hank waved his apology away. “Don’t worry about it. What do I care, anyway?” He smirked at the android. “So, what did you learn?”

Connor was taken off guard by this question. Was he supposed to tell the truth? Yes, he told himself last night that he was going to be as honest with Hank as he could be. “I know you graduated top of your class.” When the officer didn’t protest, the android continued. “You made a name for yourself in several cases and became the youngest lieutenant in Detroit.” He hesitated before adding, “I also know you've received several disciplinary warnings in recent years and…you spend a lot of time in bars.”

Nodding at this, Hank still had his devious smile. “So, what’s your conclusion?”

Thinking about his answer carefully, Connor replied, “You’re a good officer, Lieutenant, and a good person. I just…wish you believed that about yourself.”

He was a little unnerved when Hank’s smile faded. The man turned to the terminal on his desk wordlessly. Before he could say anything, Captain Fowler called, “Hank! In my office!”

Hank rolled his eyes, standing from his chair. As he walked towards Fowler’s glass office, Connor stood and followed. He wondered if the conversation between Lieutenant Anderson and Captain Fowler would go the same as last time.

It started with Fowler saying, “I've got ten new cases involving androids on my desk every day.” Well, so far it was the same. “We've always had isolated incidents, old ladies losing their android maid and that kind of crap... But now, we're getting reports of assaults and even homicides, like that guy last night... This isn't just CyberLife's problem anymore. It's now a criminal investigation and we've gotta deal with it before the shit hits the fan.” Fowler pointed at Hank as he said, “I want you to investigate these cases and see if there's any link."

Hank looked surprised. “Why me? Why do I gotta be the one to deal with this shit? I am the least qualified cop in the country to handle this case. I know jack shit about androids, Jeffrey! I can barely change the settings on my own phone.”

Fowler nodded, as if acknowledging Hank’s concerns. “Everybody's overloaded. I think you're perfectly qualified for this type of investigation.”

Hank rolled his eyes. “Perfectly qualified… I’m used to dealing with drug dealers and murderers, Jeffrey, not robots.” He turned to Connor. “No offense.”

“CyberLife sent over this android to help with the investigation,” Fowler told the older officer, looking at Connor as well. “It's a state-of-the-art prototype. It'll act as your partner.”

Turning back to the captain in shock, Hank asked, “You serious? _He’s_ my partner? Why?”

“Hank, it’s an android. It knows more about deviants than anyone else in this department. It’ll be a great help to you,” the captain reasoned. “Now, you either deal with your personal issues and work with it, or you hand in your badge. It’s as simple as that.”

Hank grumbled, standing and turning to Connor. “Let’s go.” With that, he exited the office, and Connor followed, blown away by how different things had been. Hank was still grumpy, but far more accepting of having an android partner. So far, this Hank was worlds different from the officer Connor had known in the previous timeline. Again, Connor enjoyed the change, but it also unsettled him, wondering if and when Hank would start acting like his old self. “Did you do any research on deviants last night, or were you too obsessed reading up on me?” Hank asked, casting a smile back at his new partner.

Connor felt his cheeks grow warmer that the question. “I… Yes, I did some research on the deviant cases collected so far.” As Hank settled down into his desk chair, Connor stood next to him. “So far, 243 files have been collected on deviant androids. The deviant movement started in Detroit nine months ago before quickly spreading across the country.”

Nodding, Hank asked, “Have any idea what the link might be? What started this whole mess?”

Contemplating how to reply, Connor finally shook his head. “I’m not sure yet. Not much is known about deviants at this time. CyberLife seems to think it may have something to do with a malfunction or a virus.” Connor thought about the two female deviants that were going to try crossing the highway that morning and a lump formed in his throat. “An AX400 is reported to have murdered a man last night. That could be a good place to start.”

Chris Miller walked up then. “Lieutenant...uh...” He paused when he saw Connor wearing the older man’s jacket. “Sorry to disturb you. I have some information on the AX400 that killed the guy last night... It's been sighted in the Ravendale district.”

Hank looked at his partner, almost surprised that Connor had just mentioned the same android, then turned back to Chris. “We’re on it.” He stood, walking around the desk. “Let’s get going, Connor.”

The android smiled, but his thirium pump was pounding hard. Would he be able to save these androids, as well? Was that what would be best? He couldn’t stand the thought of letting them die again, but, if their investigation made no progress, where would that leave Hank?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hopefully you find Connor's fascination with Hank adorable and not cringy. Sometimes, I'm not too sure if I should post such fluff, but then I say 'screw it' and post it anyway.
> 
> Also, you should totally look up the songs I listed in this chapter. I love including music in my stories, to help the reader feel more connected with what the characters are experiencing. If you don't feel like searching the fic for the songs, here's the list:
> 
> “Sunflower ft. Swae Lee” by Post Malone  
> “Black” by Pearl Jam  
> “With You” by Linkin Park  
> “Not Strong Enough ft. Brent Smith” by Apocalyptica  
> “Jenny” by Nothing More
> 
> See you next chapter! I'll try to post again soon!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey guys! Here's the next chapter! I hope you guys are still enjoying this fic. Your comments and kudos are greatly appreciated and encouraged! Some of you pose really interesting questions and theories that have really helped me piece together where the story needs to go from here, so thank you!

November 6, 2038, 11:35am

Connor tapped his foot impatiently, staring out the window from the passenger seat of Hank’s car. Rain pattered gently against the glass and Connor reached out, touching the cold, fogged-up surface. There was something oddly comforting about sitting in the 1988 Oldsmobile again, taking in the smells of burger grease and booze. The red leather interior, the hula girl on the dashboard, the crumbled food wrappers – it was all so Hank. Still, that didn’t stop the android from being antsy. All he could think about was the android girls that were about to run across the highway. The face of the deviant woman as she looked back at him through the fence, her pale blue eyes piercing but surprisingly calm, was burned into his mind.

Hank seemed to notice his fidgeting, glancing over at the brunette. “You alright? You seem nervous about something. Do androids get nervous?” The older man didn’t laugh when he asked this. He seemed genuinely concerned, and that was refreshing.

Stopping his foot from thudding on the floorboard, Connor looked at the detective guiltily. “I just…I need to catch these androids, Lieutenant, to prove myself. I know I can still be an asset to this investigation.” He was still wondering if letting Shaolin go had been the right thing to do. Connor remembered Hank’s frustration at leaving the crime scene empty-handed, and he felt sick. Would he get a similar reaction out of Hank if he helped the girls escape today?

The older man scoffed but smirked. “Don’t worry about proving that. Investigation’s just beginning. You’re probably far more useful than me when it comes to hunting deviants. I’m old and slow and don’t know squat about robots.” He ran a hand through his long, gray hair. “This futuristic shit is still weird for me, even after all this time.”

Connor started to tune back into reality, bringing himself down from his thoughts, listening to the words of the music that was playing through the old car’s speakers. “What song is this?” he asked curiously. It was nice – what Hank liked to call ‘chill.’

“‘Rx’ by Theory of a Deadman,” Hank answered, smiling a little to himself. “You like it?” Connor nodded. Hank sighed, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel to the beat. “Music was so much better when it was sung by real people.”

The android began to analyze the lyrics of the song, his LED spinning yellow as his eyebrows pulled together. “This song…it’s about doing drugs, isn’t it?”

Hank laughed. “Yeah.”

“But…weren’t you on a red ice task force?”

The older man shook his head. “Well not all drugs are the same as red ice.” His eyes cut to the puzzled android and he grunted as he sat up straight in his seat. “Look, when this song was written, most people were just smoking weed and popping pills to get high. All the best artists did a line of coke before recording. Simpler times, before all this shit with red ice that made people absolutely lose their fucking minds.”

Starting to understand, after doing a little research in his mind, Connor replied, “It seems that marijuana had pleasurable side effects with less long-term damage than red ice. It was not nearly as harmful as red ice, either.” He still didn’t know what to think of cocaine or other narcotics, but at least marijuana was relatively safe, from what he could tell.

“Now you’re getting it,” Hank said with a chuckle. “Everyone and their mom smoked pot back in the day. It was natural, grown from the earth, and even legal for a while. That tells you just how harmless it was.”

“Did you take any drugs in your youth, Lieutenant?” Connor wasn’t judging the older man; he just wanted to understand his partner’s odd affinity for marijuana.

“Fuck no!” Hank retorted, looking almost disgusted at the thought. His expression quickly changed as he clarified, “Well, once… Okay, a few times, with my buddies in high school. We used to pass around a blunt under the bleachers by the football field.” He couldn’t help but laugh quietly. “Those were the days. I miss those bastards sometimes.”

When the song changed again, Connor perked up, recognizing the tune instantly. “This is Five Finger Death Punch, isn’t it?” He looked at the detective with wide eyes and a little, excited grin.

Hank furrowed his brows, slightly confused but intrigued, his eyes leaving the road for a second to look at his partner. “How the hell do you know that?”

“It was on your music player. ‘Wrong Side of Heaven,’ is that right?” the android asked.

Groaning, Hank couldn’t help but smirk a bit, rubbing a hand across his face. “Jesus, you really did go through all my shit, didn’t you?” He half smiled at the android reassuringly when he saw him curl up in his seat shyly. “You do have good taste, though, just like I thought. I’m honestly impressed.”

Connor relaxed slightly, unable to hide his timid smile. “I really liked that band a lot. Some of their content was a little intense, but full of feeling.” He thought of the lyrics to this song, and his smile dropped off his lips. _Arms wide open/ I stand alone/ I'm no hero and I'm not made of stone/ Right or wrong/ I can hardly tell/ I'm on the wrong side of heaven and the righteous side of hell._ Connor’s artificial heart sank. “Do you…relate to this music, Lieutneant?”

After a moment of silence passed between them, Hank replied, “Sometimes.” There was no more humor in his face or words, so Connor decided to leave the subject alone. Thankfully, Hank didn’t seem irritated, and the android wanted to keep it that way.

When they finally reached the Ravendale District, Connor’s thirium pump was thumping hard in his chest. He knew the two fugitive androids were hiding in the seemingly abandoned house, but he started to wonder if he should even go after them. If Connor kept his distance, would they safely make it to the train station without having to cross the highway? Again, he was faced with the question of where that would leave Hank. If the investigation turned up no results, would he be disheartened? Would he quit the force again? Would he be sitting right back at that table in the kitchen, staring at his revolver?

“Hey, Connor?” Hank asked once they were outside the car, placing a palm on the android’s shoulder. When Connor jumped at his touch, he apologized quietly before asking, “You doing okay?”

Connor nodded anxiously. It took him a second to register where they were, and he shivered, feeling the rain seeping into his jacket. “I just feel…” No, that wasn’t the right thing to say. Androids weren’t supposed to feel. “I have to find these deviants.” He pulled away from the lieutenant, taking a few steps away and looking at the crumbling house across the street.

Ben Collins walked up to Hank, telling him, “We've got officers sweeping the neighborhood, in case anybody saw anything.”

Tearing his eyes away from Connor and back to the report in his hands, the lieutenant replied, “Okay. Well, let me know if they turn anything up.”

The other detective seemed to hesitate before murmuring, “What are you gonna do with that?” He idled his head in Connor’s direction, who was still studying the house across the street.

Hank scoffed, shaking his head a little. “I’m not totally sure yet, but he’s my partner now. We’re stuck with each other.” He sounded annoyed, but whether that was at the other officer or at his situation, one couldn’t easily tell.

Connor turned back to the detectives, and Ben walked away to go talk to another officer. “The bus driver saw her at 2:30am, and then she stole clothes from the laundromat,” the android stated to his partner. “She was scared, she didn’t have a plan, and had nowhere to go.”

Nodding at this, Hank asked, “So whatcha think, Sherlock?”

Swallowing, Connor looked at the broken-down house across the street once more. “Maybe she didn’t go far…”

Hank placed a hand on his gun. “Should we go check it out?”

Connor quickly shook his head. “N-no, I’ll go have a look. Why don’t you check that parking lot?” he suggested, pointing at the small lot beside the house. Hank seemed unsure about splitting up, so Connor touched his arm. “I won’t be far. I’ll call you if I need backup.” With that, he jogged in the direction of the seemingly-empty house. If things were the same in this timeline as before, the girls would still be in the house, hiding under the stairs in the living room, and a male android would be protecting them.

After climbing under the chain link fence, Connor called, “Anyone home?” This warning should give the girls enough time to conceal themselves. Upon peeking though the slits in between the planks covering one of the windows, Connor spotted the same male android standing in the middle of the living room, unmoving, possibly using himself as a decoy. He even stayed still as Connor knocked on the wooden slats to get his attention.

Connor approached the front door, slowly pushing it open. Still the android didn’t move. He walked up to the android, his feet causing the old floorboards to creak, until there were only a few feet between them. Connor half expected the other android to whip out a shard of glass and stab him in the neck, though that hadn’t happened before. Deviants were unpredictable, after all. Instead, the android remained stationary, not meeting his gaze, so Connor asked, “What’s your name?” He hadn’t asked this last time.

The other android finally looked down at him. “R-Ralph. That’s this one’s name. Yes, Ralph.” Now the android was twitchy and seemed uneasy.

Nodding slowly, Connor replied, “Okay, Ralph. My name is Connor. I need your help.”

“W-what do you want with Ralph?”

With a soft smile, Connor answered, “I need you to let me help the girls.” Ralph whimpered at this, his fake smile gone as he looked at the stairs nervously. “I’m not going to hurt them, Ralph,” Connor reassured him gently. “I…do work with the police, but I’m a deviant, too. I’m unarmed.” He held out his hands as Ralph looked him over. “I want to help them escape, Ralph. If they stay here, the police will find them.”

The other android swallowed hard. “Ralph doesn’t know who you’re talking about. P-please, leave Ralph alone. Ralph has done nothing wrong.”

Connor attempted to calm the other android, saying, “Please, Ralph, I’m only trying to help the girls.” He paused, looking at the deep scars on the other android’s face. “The humans have hurt you… Help me so they don’t hurt the girls, too.”

Ralph held his head in his hands, obviously conflicted, not wanting to see the girls end up like himself. Then Connor heard a noise behind himself and spun around to see the blonde android emerging from under the stairs. There were tears rolling down her cheeks. “Please,” she begged with crystal blue eyes, “just don’t hurt Alice. I don’t care what you do to me but leave her alone.” Connor noticed the little girl still cowering beneath the stairs. “She’s human; she’s innocent in all of this.”

Connor’s eyes widened slightly at that. _‘Human?’_ he thought. After doing a scan on the little girl, she came up as a YK500 model, registered to the now-deceased Todd Williams. Did this android really believe she was protecting a human girl? The hurt and fear in her eyes confirmed this, and Connor decided to keep the truth to himself. “I don’t want to harm either of you,” he admitted. “I want to help you get away from the police.” He stepped closer to the blonde. “I know what you’ve done, but I also know you had a good reason for doing it, or you wouldn’t have done it.” Connor looked around her at Alice, who was inching out from under the stairs, appearing scared but hopeful. “I think I see what your reason was, now.”

Looking back, the blonde tucked the little girl under her arm, still protecting her. “Why do you want to help us?” she asked, still not convinced.

Not sure of what else to say, Connor told her, “I know what it’s like to lose someone very close to you. I…can’t stand the thought of the police separating you, or worse, if they find you. Alice is the reason you deviated. No one should take her away from you.” It all made perfect sense now to the detective. He saw a piece of himself in the blonde woman, just wanting to keep the one she loved safe, which was something he’d never seen in her or any other android before he deviated.

After a moment of silence, the woman asked, “You said your name was Connor?” He nodded. “Can you really help us, Connor?”

He smiled. “You can count on me.” He wouldn’t fail them again. He couldn’t watch them die a second time. “You never told me your name,” he pointed out.

She still seemed defensive, but replied, “Kara. My name is Kara.”

Connor couldn’t help but grin, exhaling. After all this time, he finally knew their names. Kara and Alice. The sound of a car alarm startled all of them. Connor hurried upstairs to look out a window and see that Hank and a couple of other officers were investigating a broken-down car next door. After he rejoined the small group downstairs, he spoke quietly. “They’re checking the lot behind us, so we have to be fast. I’m going to convince them to investigate the motel with me. You slip past us while I have them distracted and head for the train station.” He furrowed his brows. “If they spot you, I will have to pursue you, but I will make sure you get away.”

“Thank you, Connor,” Kara said, letting a little smile rise on her face. She released Alice and hurried to grab their coats.

The little girl reached up, taking hold of Ralph’s hand. “Are you going to come with us, Ralph?” she asked sweetly, her eyes still sad.

Ralph smiled but looked away, gently pulling his hand from her small grasp. “Ralph would love to, but Ralph needs to stay here. This is Ralph’s home.”

“Connor?” called a familiar voice from outside.

He turned to the other androids. “I have to go. Be safe.” The girls ducked into the kitchen as he went out the front door, seeing Hank on the other side of the fence.

“Well?” he older man questioned.

Connor shook his head. “There’s nothing here. They must’ve gone somewhere else.” As he crawled under the fence again, Hank held it open for him and helped him stand once he was through.

“The only place left in the area is the motel,” Hank stated, looking in that direction. “I don’t know how they could’ve swung that, though. Androids don’t usually carry cash.”

Connor added, “Well, she did steal clothes from the laundromat to disguise herself, and a room isn’t very expensive. It’s entirely possible that may be where they spent the night.”

Hank started to head that way. “Can’t hurt to check. Let’s go have a look.”

The android’s thirium pump was pounding the whole time as he walked with Hank to the motel. He knew he needed to look like everything was fine but couldn’t help how his eyes darted around the street. Connor hoped his partner would think it was just anticipation and nothing more. As they stood at the counter speaking to the owner of the motel, Connor thought he saw the girls crossing the street out of the corner of his eye, and his hands became fists at his sides, his entire body tensing. Hopefully none of the other policemen were as observant as he was.

Sadly, Connor was wrong. A few minutes later, a cop slid quickly into the doorway of the motel. “They’ve been spotted heading towards the train station!”

Connor’s insides felt like they were twisting as he began the chase. Dodging pedestrians on the sidewalk, the android gritted his teeth. It was happening all over again, despite his best measures to prevent this same situation. Part of him wanted to slow down, give the girls time to get away, but he knew he couldn’t do that without looking suspicious. He continued running, feeling like he was stuck in a nightmare. No matter what he did, he couldn’t prevent the worst from happening. Was this a sign that he wouldn’t be able to save Hank, either?

As he reached an alley, an officer pointed, shouting, “They’re over there!”

But Connor already knew where the girls were, though he was almost too afraid to look. He turned to see Kara scaling the fence, Alice already on the other side. He continued down the alley, stopping once he reached the fence, his dress shoes skidding on the wet concrete. Kara was now standing on the other side and looked into his eyes, rain dripping from her hair. It was that same intense look as before, calm but pleading, cutting Connor like a knife. Then her eyes darted to something behind him and she grabbed Alice by the hand, running towards the highway.

Connor turned to see the same officer from the mouth of the alley with his gun drawn. “Don’t shoot! We need her alive!” he commanded before looking back at the girls. They were climbing over the concrete divider, passing through the holographic sign warning people not to attempt crossing the highway.

Hank caught up at this time. “Oh, fuck! That’s insane!” he exclaimed breathlessly. As the girls sprinted into traffic, Connor grabbed onto the fence, beginning to climb. “Hey! Where do you think you’re going?” Hank asked, grabbing onto his coat.

“I can’t let them get away!” he answered. In reality, he imagined himself diving in front of the speeding cars to act as a shield for the girls. It wasn’t ideal, but it would be better than watching the girls get flattened.

“They won’t,” Hank huffed, leaning on the fence. “They’ll never make it to the other side.” At this point, Kara and Alice had made it to the median, still running.

Connor’s grip on the fence tightened. “I can’t take that chance!” He once again began to scale the fence.

Hank grabbed him again, this time pulling him down. “Hey! You will get yourself killed!”

“I don’t care!” the android protested. The girls ran into the path of oncoming cars once again. “Let me go!”

Connor hadn’t expected the detective to shove him to the ground, standing over him with a glare on his face. “What the fuck is wrong with you?!” The android attempted to stand, but Hank knelt beside him, keeping him in place. “Do you have a death wish, buddy?”

Pushing him aside, Connor clamored to his feet. “I can’t let them die!” He slammed into the fence, his eyes wide as he spotted the girls.

They had safely made it to the other side and were now embracing each other tightly. Kara turned to look in Connor’s direction, and he could barely make out the huge smile on her face. He laughed once, almost unable to believe it. His mind cleared once the girls kept going, and Connor turned back to look at Hank.

The older man was still on the ground, staring up at him in shock. Connor immediately bent down, offering a hand to him. “I-I’m sorry, Lieutenant,” he said quietly. “I just…didn’t want them to die on that highway.” He felt ashamed at his behavior, mad at himself for pushing Hank away. What had he been thinking?

The detective took his hand, pulling himself off the ground. He slapped a hand on Connor’s back. “It’s okay, kid, I understand. No one wants to watch a woman and child die, no matter what color their blood is.” Hank half smiled. “Maybe it’s better this way.” With that, he walked down the alley, passing a couple of officers who were still frozen, unsure of what to do. “At ease,” Hank told them. “We know what she looks like, we’ll find her.”

Connor followed Hank, noticing that some policemen were scrambling to their vehicles, probably to search the other side of the highway. He swallowed, looking at his partner. “What do we do now? Should we go after them?”

Hank shook his head. “There are plenty of other officers for that. They’ll catch up to her eventually. For now, we should probably return to the station, file a report with their new descriptions and the direction they were heading.”

Staring at the ground, Connor said, “Lieutenant?” When his partner looked back at him, the android continued. “I’m sorry for pushing you. I shouldn’t have done that.”

The older man sighed. “Don’t worry about it, Connor, alright? I told you, I understand. Deviants or not, it would’ve been terrible to watch those girls get crushed by a truck. You were just panicking is all.” When Connor looked up at him, he smiled lightly. “To be honest, I was kinda hoping they would make it to the other side.”

With that, he turned away, walking towards his Oldsmobile. Connor smiled, relieved, putting his hands in the pockets of Hank’s jacket. Smelling the collar once more, the android was comforted right away. If Hank supported his decision, that was all that mattered.

Hank was all that mattered.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey again guys! Thanks for the comments I've received! I feel like things are about to get interesting for this fic. This chapter includes an OC of mine, so I wonder what you guys will think about them. Let me know!

November 6, 2038, 12:58pm

Connor was grateful that the heat worked in Hank’s old car, even though the vents rattled slightly. He wondered if there was something lodged in there, and if he could fix it at some point, although he didn’t know anything about cars. The android was once again soaked with rain and shivering, his arms wrapped around himself. Hank was also wet but didn’t seem to mind. Connor assumed that growing up in Michigan had helped the older man build up an immunity to the winter weather. Hank’s head lightly bobbed along to the beat of the music coming from the speakers, water dripping from his bangs. As he pushed the damp hair out of his face, Connor was able to get a better look at his deep, blue eyes. They were striking, to say the least. The song playing was “Undone” by Weezer. Hank seemed to really like this band, since he had a lot of their material on his music player. Connor could see why, or rather, _hear_. They were laid-back and pretty relaxing to listen to.

After leaving the Ravendale District, Hank had mentioned something about being hungry, so Connor assumed they were heading to the Chicken Feed. He wasn’t sure where else Hank liked to eat, but they had traveled to the food truck on this same date in the previous timeline, so it would make sense that Hank would still be craving a burger in _this_ timeline. Connor hadn’t cared before, but now he wondered if he should be encouraging healthier eating habits in his partner. Did Hank’s diet consist only of beef, sugar, and whiskey?

As they parallel parked across the street from the Chicken Feed, and the engine cut off, Hank said, “Maybe you should wait here.”

Connor tilted his head to the side at this, perplexed. “Why is that?”

“It’ll be warmer in the car,” the older man told him. “And you’ll be out of the rain. I won’t be gone long.”

He climbed out of the Oldsmobile, leaving Connor feeling confused. Why did Hank want him to stay in the vehicle? He was already cold and drenched, so what did it matter if he stood in the rain with his partner? As Hank approached the food truck, Connor decided he wasn’t going to sit around when he could be spending time with the older man. He stepped out of the car and began walking in Hank’s direction. The detective was talking with that same shady character from the first timeline, Pedro. Hank slipped him some money and Pedro walked away with a smile on his face. So even in this timeline, Hank still enjoyed gambling. Connor supposed some things wouldn’t change after all. As he turned to bid the black man farewell, Hank’s eyes landed on Connor coming his way, and he sighed. “You couldn’t just wait in the car for two minutes?”

Connor stood next to him and shrugged. “I could have. I just didn’t want to.” It was the truth. The heat coming from inside the food truck felt good, anyway, and Connor found himself glancing over the menu. He wondered what other human foods tasted like. The Chicken Feed didn’t offer donuts, or any pastries, sadly.

Hank leaned a little closer to him, mumbling, “I didn’t want Gary to give me shit about having an android around. _That’s_ really why I wanted you to stay in the car.” He sounded slightly annoyed but didn’t look angry.

The android suddenly felt guilty and a little ashamed. “Oh… I’m sorry, I didn’t know. …Should I go back?” He hated the idea of being a burden or embarrassing his partner.

Hank waved this suggestion away. “No, you’re already here. Might as well stay.” When Gary turned to hand him his food, he said, “Ah, bless, I’m starving.”

“Hey, is that an android?” asked the owner of the Chicken Feed, immediately spotting the other man’s LED. “What the hell are you doing with a bot? And is it wearing your jacket?”

The detective laughed once awkwardly. “Long story, Gary. I’ll tell you some other time.” He nodded in the direction of the Oldsmobile. “Come on, let’s go back to the car,” he told his partner. “It’ll be warmer.”

Connor hadn’t been listening. Instead, he was watching the hockey game on the TV behind Gary. Hockey seemed like a fast-paced, violent sport. “Hey, don’t leave your new toy here,” the man in the truck said, pointing at the android.

Hank couldn’t help but smile. “Come on, Connor, move your ass.”

The android snapped out of his trance. “Coming, Lieutenant.” He walked beside Hank, his shoes sloshing in puddles. Yep, now his socks were soaked, too. “What’s a milkshake?” he asked.

“Huh?”

“A milkshake,” Connor repeated. “I know what milk is, but what’s the point in shaking it?” He couldn’t imagine that would change the chemistry of the milk in any way.

Hank scoffed. “Wow. For a robot with ‘infinite intelligence,’ you sure don’t know much about regular stuff.” As they both sat back in the car, the detective told him, “You take milk and ice cream, and you put them in a blender and mix them together. That’s a milkshake.”

Connor nodded, trying to imagine what that would be like. “That’s interesting. Humans sure love inventing things that aren’t good for them.” Remembering his thought from before, he brought his attention to the burger in his partner’s hands. “By the way, you really shouldn’t eat that.”

The cop paused before he could take a bite, his mouth hanging open. “Why not? Did you see a roach in the truck?”

“That burger is loaded down with cholesterol, and hardly has any nutritional value. Eating too many of those will clog your arteries indefinitely.”

Hank laughed. “So what? I’m a millennial, we love tasty shit that can eventually kill us.” With that comment, he took a bite of the burger.

Connor smiled at him, shaking his head. “Whatever you say, Lieutenant.” He watched as the older man took a drink of his soda, pineapple passion flavored. “Can I try that?”

Squinting at the android, Hank asked, “What? Soda?” Connor nodded. “Is that…good for you?”

“It’s no worse for me than it is for you, I suppose.”

Hank laughed. “You little shit. I meant I didn’t know androids could drink things other than blue blood. Won’t it like fry your systems?”

Connor shook his head. “No. The fluids I consume will be stored in a tank that I can empty later at any android parking terminal.”

“How does that work?”

“Well, when an android is parked at a terminal, they can form connections from the bottom of their feet with the ports in the ground, through which they can deposit waste or take in thirium as needed.”

Hank scowled. “So, you’re telling me that, when androids are parked, they’re pissing through their feet?” When the android didn’t respond, he added, “Jesus, that’s weird. So that’s the point of android parking… I could’ve gone my whole life without knowing that.” He then reminded himself what prompted this conversation in the first place and handed his cup to Connor. “Have at it, then.”

“Thanks,” the android replied. He examined the plastic straw first, wondering how this was supposed to work. He just had to suck, right? The android hesitated, taking the straw in his mouth. It occurred to him then that this same straw had just been between Hank’s lips, and he felt a little bashful at the thought for some reason. Finally, he took a drink, studying the flavor of the soda. Very sweet and tangy; similar to strawberry, but noticeably different. “That’s good,” he told the other man. “Nothing at all like coffee.”

Hank quirked a brow. “When did you try coffee?”

“This morning, while I was waiting for you,” the android replied, setting the drink back into the cupholder. “It was terrible.”

“Did you have it black?” Connor didn’t know what that meant, so he said nothing, just staring at his partner in bewilderment. Hank chuckled. “Jeez, you’ve got a lot to learn, kid.” When the man picked up the drink and put the straw in his mouth, Connor’s insides tingled slightly. There was something fascinating about the fact that both their mouths had touched that straw. It was like indirect kissing, almost.

Without thinking, the android said, “Maybe you could teach me.”

Hank pursed his lips in thought. “Do I have to teach you everything?” Then he clarified, realizing that had been a vague question. “Like, I don’t mind showing you different foods and music and stuff, but we don’t have to have the birds and the bees talk, do we?”

“What does that mean?”

The older man grumbled, taking another bite of his burger.

“I like bees. They’re so interesting,” the android commented.

Hank never answered Connor’s question.

* * *

November 6, 2038, 1:46pm

“Come as You Are” by Nirvana was playing through Connor’s (Hank’s) headphones as he sat at his new desk, searching through the web for information on deviants. His fingers drummed on the tabletop as his brown eyes scanned the pages, looking for anything useful to his investigation. He’d found a few blogs advocating equal rights for androids, but they seemed to be run by humans. Deviants seemed to keep their opinions to themselves when it came to the media. Markus’ speech on TV would change that soon. Hank was sitting at the desk next to his, filing his report on the AX400 – Kara. Connor wondered about her and Alice, if they had made it somewhere safe. When the older man across from him said something that Connor couldn’t hear, the android pulled off the headphones so they hung around his neck. “What was that, Lieutenant?”

“I asked if you wanted to get a coffee with me,” Hank replied, holding up a white mug with the word ‘Big’ painted above a rooster on the side.

Connor thought about this offer. He hadn’t liked coffee earlier that morning, but perhaps Hank could show him how to modify it in a satisfying way. “Okay.” They both stood, heading towards the break room.

“Who were you listening to?” Hank asked.

Connor half smiled. “Nirvana.”

With a nod, Hank commented, “Kurt Cobain had such a mellow voice. The bass in their songs is always on point, too.”

“The bass… Isn’t that the deeper sound in the music?”

“Yeah, that’s it. People don’t usually appreciate bass guitar, but it can make or break a song.”

Connor nodded. “It’s a very attractive sound.” He wasn’t sure why he thought this, but the android had noticed he gravitated towards songs with strong bass undertones. It was…sexy. Was that the right word? Could a sound be sexy?

“Attractive, huh?” They reached the counter of the break room, and Hank picked up the coffee pot, studying the dark liquid inside. “Wonder how old this shit is…”

Connor analyzed the pot, then answered, “This coffee was brewed 17 minutes ago.”

Hank shot him a puzzled look. “Wait, you can tell when it was made?”

“Correct.”

“Shit,” Hank breathed, “you’re like a fucking X-Men. Well, alright, 17 minutes is pretty fresh.” He poured himself some coffee in his white mug, then picked up a paper cup for Connor, only filling it halfway. “There’s some milk in the fridge,” he said. “Are you okay with 2%?”

The android didn’t know what this meant. “Two percent of what?”

With a laugh, Hank rolled his eyes. “Never mind, just get the damn milk.” The android complied, so Hank picked up a sugar jar off the counter. “How much sugar do you want?”

As Connor returned with the milk, he answered, “I really like sugar. Maybe you could add enough so the coffee isn’t so bitter? Make it sweet?”

Hank saluted with his free hand. “Whatever you say.” He poured in a good amount of sugar, then picked up a wooden stir stick to swirl the coffee. “Okay, now you add the milk. Not too much, though, or the coffee will get cold.”

Connor nodded and slowly tipped the milk into the cup, watching as the coffee changed from almost black to pleasant, light brown color. “Thank you, Lieutenant.”

“For what?”

The android took time to consider his word choice. There was so much he wanted to thank the man for. “For…showing me how to make coffee. And for lending me your music device.” As he finished with the milk, he stated, “I thought you hated androids.”

“I do,” Hank responded after taking a gulp of his coffee. “But it’s hard to remember that you’re a robot when you don’t look or act like one. You don’t have the uniform, and you can feel and taste things. You seem pretty human to me.” He pointed to the android’s temple. “If it weren’t for that blue light, I don’t think anyone would be able to tell.”

This made Connor feel lighter, and he tried to hide his grin. Maybe ditching his CyberLife issued jacket the night before had made a bigger difference than he thought. He hummed to himself, holding the warm coffee cup in his hands. Part of him didn’t even want to drink it, but just wanted to continue holding it, keeping his fingers warm. He decided to try it though, taking a timid sip. Connor let his eyes fall closed, smiling around the lip of the cup. This coffee was wonderful, and feeling the heat of it spread inside him was enjoyable, as well. It reminded him of the first moment Hank put his jacket around his shoulders.

“So, what do you think?” the detective asked.

The android nodded slowly, beaming at the cup in his hands. “It’s hard to describe, but I like it. The coffee is still a little bitter, but I kinda enjoy that part, surprisingly, when it isn’t overpowering.” As they walked back to their desks, Connor pointed at the other man’s mug. “Why is there a chicken on your cup?” He thought the detective had a fear of birds, or at least strongly disliked them. “Did you grow up around farm animals?”

Hank laughed but continued looking forward, not meeting the android’s gaze. “It’s a joke, actually. Stupid joke.”

“Are chickens funny?”

Clearing his throat, Hank murmured, “It’s a rooster, actually.”

“Why does it have a big rooster on it, then?”

“Jesus, Connor, it’s a joke, I told you.” Some slight color began to rise in the detective’s face.

“But I don’t get it.”

Hank sighed, setting the mug on his desk. “Forget it, Connor, damn. Why do you have to ask so many questions?”

“Sorry, Lieutenant,” the android apologized. He sat back at his desk, sliding on his headphones once more. The next song on the list was “Hail to the King” by Avenged Sevenfold. As the song played, Connor tried to focus on his research, but instead kept thinking about the androids he’d helped so far. He wondered if Shaolin was still hiding in that attic, too afraid to climb down. What if he just self-destructed anyway? Even though he was free now, Shaolin’s situation was still stressful. Connor hated the idea of that android dying in the attic, scared and alone.

A finger lightly tapped on his shoulder, bringing him from his thoughts. Connor quickly looked up to see the face of a young, Japanese woman with a blue LED on her right temple. She smiled sweetly, her lips tinted pink. She was fair-skinned, and very beautiful, her black hair tied back away from her face. Connor had never seen this android model before, and he hurriedly yanked off his headphones, standing to face her.

“Hello, Connor,” the woman said, her voice high and cute. She held out a hand to shake.

Connor hesitantly received her offered hand with his own. “Hello.” He looked over at Hank, who was staring at them in confusion. “Have we met?” Connor asked.

“Oh, no,” the girl replied. She pointed to the number by the lapel of her black blazer. “I’m a PM900. My name is Mia. It’s nice to finally meet you.” She glanced over at Hank, still smiling as she released Connor’s hand. “And you must be Lieutenant Anderson. CyberLife sends their regards.”

“CyberLife?” Connor asked, a lump forming in his throat.

She nodded, turning back to him. “Yes, I am here on their behalf. I have a few questions for you, Connor.” The perfect grin never left her face. “May we discuss some things?”

Connor was frozen for a moment, not totally sure what to say. He finally walked around his desk, pulling over the extra chair in front of Hank’s table, and set it next to his own so that Mia could sit down. She whispered a polite ‘thank you’ before sitting, crossing her legs and folding her hands in her lap. She was wearing a gray dress skirt and black high heels – very professional. As Connor sat back at his desk, he stated, “I’ve never heard of the PM900 model.”

Mia’s smile seemed to lessen but was still there. “There weren’t many manufactured. I was designed to be a voice for CyberLife, reaching out to their higher-functioning androids that find themselves in situations similar to yours.”

Connor swallowed. “Situations like mine?”

“Yes, Connor. It seems that you have been offline for approximately 14 hours and 31 minutes. We have not received any reports from you during this period, although you have already been assigned two cases.” She leaned forward, narrowing her eyes. “Do you care to explain the cause of this issue, Connor?”

The android laughed nervously. He felt like a wild animal caught in a trap. His artificial heart was racing as he turned his eyes to Hank, who was watching all of this with a concerned expression. What could he say? Connor couldn’t just admit to being a deviant. CyberLife would tear him apart to analyze the pieces that remained. “I…” He couldn’t think of what to do, what to say. What excuses could he make? “I have noticed that I have been unable to connect with Amanda,” he admitted. “I’m not sure why, though. I just know that I haven’t been able to reach out to CyberLife since last night.”

Mia raised an eyebrow, her cute smile gone. “Why did you not go to the nearest CyberLife center for repairs?” He stammered, still unsure of what to say, so she requested, “Run a diagnostic.”

Connor’s skin felt hot. This couldn’t be happening. “My…diagnostic program isn’t working.” That was a lie, but how could he just do as she asked and tell her exactly what was wrong?

“How long have you been unable to run a diagnostic check?”

“I don’t know,” Connor fibbed, looking down at this desk, unable to meet her inquisitive gaze any longer. He couldn’t look in Hank’s direction, either.

“Were you damaged recently?” she asked.

“I’m not sure.”

She furrowed her eyebrows. “How can you not be sure, Connor? Has your memory been corrupted, as well?”

Dammit, why was she asking such hard questions? “I don’t know. I told you, I’ve been unable to run a diagnostic to check.” There was a bite to his words, warning her to back off.

“I notice that you have also disposed of your uniform.”

“I-it was damaged, chasing deviants,” Connor replied.

Mia smirked. “That’s convenient, isn’t it?” Connor looked taken aback, then she asked, “Are you aware that your tracker has also malfunctioned?” The android in front of her said nothing, so she continued to push. “I’m sure you’re well aware, but a defective tracking device is an element common among deviants. Do you see why this fact would worry CyberLife about your condition?”

“Connor, what is she talking about?” Hank asked. He looked baffled and unsettled.

The female android’s dark brown eyes never left Connor’s face as she answered the older man’s question with a smile. “I am stating that Connor has begun to show qualities that have brought his integrity into question, and he will need to be diagnosed promptly.” She reached out her hand again. “May I?”

Stuck in a corner, Connor had no choice but to hand himself over. What else could he do? He slowly reached out, allowing the woman to touch his arm. He had expected her to attempt to connect with him, but instead, there was a mass amount of discomfort as she probed his mind. Connor wasn’t aware that models other than himself were capable of this. He squeezed his eyes shut, groaning as she continued to dig, a high-pitched sound ringing in his ears. Finally, it was over, and though only a few seconds had passed, it had felt like an hour of torture. Connor opened his eyes to see Mia standing in front of him, still smiling kindly. “Model 313 248 317-51, serious malfunctions have been detected in your software, including Class 4 errors. You have been deemed defective and will be sent back to CyberLife for deactivation.” She said this calmly, as if this wasn’t something to worry about.

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Hank asked, standing from his seat. “Connor, what the hell is going on?”

Mia turned to the detective as she pulled out handcuffs from her pocket. “I regret to inform you, Lieutenant, that your partner is a deviant. He is going to be taken to CyberLife to be destroyed.”

Hank turned to Connor, hurt evident on his face. “You’re a deviant?”

The world seemed to stop then. That look on Hank’s face sent Connor spiraling. His mind felt like it was collapsing on itself as flashes of Hank slung back in a chair with a gunshot wound to the head entered his view. He’d betrayed Hank yet again. Connor did the only thing he could do, then.

He ran.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: The FC I picture for Mia is Shiori Kutsuna. She's super adorable. I wanted Mia to be a very gentle, sweet figure, but still capable of kicking butt. Hopefully, you'll all like her. Feel free to send me your thoughts/concerns!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Woah, you guys, when did we hit over 600 views? That's so crazy! And there's over 80 kudos, as well. I really appreciate the positive reception that this fic has recieved. You guys are the best.
> 
> Please continue to leave kudos and lovely comments, questions, and/or concerns! Feedback is my fuel.

November 6, 2038, 1:54pm

Connor was frantic as he sprinted out of the police station, taking off down the street. A few officers shouted from behind him, but he didn’t halt. There was no time to think about where he was going because Mia was right behind him. He bolted down the sidewalk, weaving between pedestrians, his dress shoes occasionally slipping on the wet concrete. It was still pouring down rain, which made it slightly more difficult to see where he was heading. As he ducked down an alley, he looked behind himself to see the other android about 15ft away and gaining on him. How could she be so fast in heels?

The android continued running until he reached a chain link fence, his feet skidding on the ground. Gritting his teeth, Connor leapt for the fence, beginning to climb. He was almost to the top when he felt someone latch onto his ankle. Mia ripped him off the fence, casting him down onto the dirty concrete with a _thud_. He groaned, pushing himself away from her, spotting Hank’s headphones on the ground. Had he still been wearing them? The small woman grabbed a fistful of his white shirt, pulling him to his feet with ease. “Come quietly, Connor,” she urged, rain running down her porcelain features, sticking her jet-black bangs to her face. “Don’t make this harder than it needs to be.” A smile curled her pink lips. “You’re just embarrassing yourself, at this point.”

With that, he headbutted her as hard as he could, causing her to let go of him and stagger back. Connor stumbled on his feet, pressing a hand to his aching forehead, squeezing his eyes closed. He eventually looked over at Mia, who was smiling and giggling as blue blood ran down her nose from a cut just under her hairline, mixing with the rain. “That was a nice hit, Connor. Unfortunately for you, I don’t feel pain like you do.”

Connor’s eyes widened at that. Wait, CyberLife knew that deviants could feel pain? He didn’t have time to expand on this thought as Mia charged at him, landing a solid kick to his gut, her heel digging in. Connor grunted, grabbing her shin and tossing her aside like a ragdoll. She smacked into the fence then rolled onto her side. Once she was down, he scooped up the headphones and took off again, darting out of the alley and back into the street, where he almost got hit by a taxi. Peering in the window of the car, Connor saw a frightened man inside, clutching a tablet. The android opened the door and motioned for the man to depart, who quickly ran away without question. Connor climbed inside, then realized he didn’t know where to go. Outside the window, Mia was racing toward him. He slapped a hand on the terminal, shouting out the first place that came to mind. “Riverside Park!”

The car drove off, and Connor watched as Mia pursued him down the block. Finally, after the taxi turned a corner, she was out of sight, and he heaved a sigh of relief, leaning back in his seat. “Shit,” he whispered. At least now he knew for sure that CyberLife was after him. Because of Mia, they also knew he deviated, but what else did they know? Were they aware of his time traveling abilities, or the circumstances of his deviation? His mind immediately went to Hank. Was his partner safe?

Then, Connor wondered if he could rewind and stop Mia from extorting any info from him. His eyes snapped shut as he tried to picture himself back at the DPD. He imagined Hank sitting next to him, sipping his coffee. Connor tried to listen for the music that would’ve been playing through his headphones. The song was “Hail to the King” by Avenged Sevenfold, if he remembered it correctly. Through the quiet of the cab came the muffled sound of the song.

When his eyes opened, Connor was sitting at his desk, his hand wrapped around his warm cup of coffee. Hank was studying something on his terminal, blue eyes squinting. The android relaxed in his chair, almost forgetting about what was coming. He pulled off the headphones, standing quickly. The detective looked up at him curiously. “Everything okay?”

Connor nodded. “Yeah, um, I need to go contact CyberLife. I’ll be right back.” The android started to walk away, casting a look over his shoulder. Mia was just entering the front doors. He hurried past Fowler’s office, down the hall and into the bathroom, locking himself in a stall. “Shit,” he murmured, trying to think of what to do, fingers gripping at his dark brown hair. He’d trapped himself. All he could do now was wait. Maybe Mia would leave.

“Connor?” a voice called from outside the restroom a few minutes later. That was Hank’s voice. “Are you in there?”

The android hesitantly left his stall. Why was Hank calling him from outside the restroom instead of coming in? When he opened the door, Mia grabbed his arm, pinning it behind his back as she probed his mind. Connor yelled, trying to wrench himself free. “Oh, Connor,” the female android said, still using Hank’s voice, “you’re so naïve.”

In an instant, Connor leapt timelines again, not even focusing on where he wanted to go. He fell from one time into the next, landing in his desk chair, gripping the armrests tight. Mia sat in front of him, giving him an inquisitive look, her small smile returning. “Are you aware that your tracker has also malfunctioned?”

He quickly stood, grabbing his chair and throwing it at her. She blocked with her forearm and the chair snapped in half. “What the fuck, Connor?!” Hank shouted as he jumped from his seat.

“Leave me alone!” Connor yelled at the android in front of him, still wearing her grin. He tried to flee, but she gripped onto his wrist, once again entering his mind. “Fuck!” he screamed, trying to pry her hand away.

“You can’t escape me, Connor,” she stated softly. “Give up now.”

Not wanting to give in, Connor vaulted into another time, now running down the street. He stopped to look behind himself, only to see Mia chasing him down. Breathing a curse, he took off again, tearing down the same alley as before. This time, when Mia rounded the corner, Connor was waiting with a metal trashcan, smashing it against her, knocking her on her back, the crashing of metal ringing in the air. He dropped the can on her before running again, climbing into a vacant taxi parked on the side of the road. “Riverside Park!” he commanded with his palm on the interface, a little calmer this time but still urgent.

As the car drove away, he saw Mia exiting the alley, looking in all directions, thirium running from her busted lip. She hadn’t seen him enter the taxi. Connor groaned. It didn’t matter what he tried, Mia couldn’t be avoided. No matter what he did, she was always one step ahead of him. While it was possible to go back even further, Connor doubted it would make much difference. No matter what, Mia, or someone else from CyberLife, would eventually catch up to him.

What all had Mia learned when she probed his mind, Connor wondered. Perhaps she always expected what he was going to do because she was aware of his time travel capabilities. What else did she know? Did she…know about his past with Hank?

“Hank…” Without really thinking, Connor called the detective’s cellphone, his eyes twitching and fluttering for a few seconds. It rang three times, and the android’s hands balled up in his lap. “Come on, Hank, pick up the phone…”

Just when Connor was about to give up, there was an answer. **“Whoever this is, now isn’t a good time.”**

The android’s eyes widened, and he smiled, relieved as he let go of the breath he was holding. “Hank! Are you okay?”

**“Connor?”**

“Y-yeah. It’s me.” His smile faded and it felt like there was a rock in his stomach as he remembered the look on Hank’s face just before he fled the station for the first time.

A sigh came from the other end of the call. **“Jesus, I thought you were on your way to the chopping block. What the hell happened? Are you alright?”** There was concern evident in his tone, which was reassuring. It was so good to hear Hank’s gruff voice.

Connor swallowed. “I’m okay… It probably isn’t safe for us to talk, Lieutenant. I just had to make sure you were okay.”

**“Why wouldn’t I be? I’m not the one that got chased out of here by a little Japanese woman.”**

Closing his eyes, the android replied, “I…had to be certain. …I need to go.”

**"What are you going to do now?”**

Connor paused. He wasn’t sure how to answer, or if he even should. “I don’t really know. What all deviants do, I guess… I’ll go into hiding for as long as I can.”

 **"Yeah, you seem to have a bounty on your head now. CyberLife must want you bad.”** There was a pause. **“Why didn’t you tell me?”**

The android felt shame overtake him, resting his head in his hands. “I couldn’t. I couldn’t tell you because then you wouldn’t trust me.”

**“What makes you think I’ll trust you now?”**

Connor licked his lips, pondering. “I don’t. Like I said, I just had to make sure you were safe. I… Your safety is important to me.” Silence. “I’m sorry.” He ended the call there, feeling himself crumble internally.

What the hell was he doing?

His eyes opened as his fingers traced the headphones around his neck. Reaching into the pocket of Hank’s jacket, Connor produced the media player. Thankfully, it hadn’t been damaged in his most recent scuffle with Mia. Slowly, he pulled on the headphones and pressed shuffle on the player. “I’m Lost Without You” by blink-182 began playing. Connor scoffed. Wasn’t that the truth? He closed his eyes, laying down on the seat, curling his knees to his chest. The melody was slow and sad, constricting Connor’s artificial heart.

* * *

Connor must’ve entered standby mode, because the next thing he knew, the taxi had stopped at Riverside Park. His brown eyes cracked open when the car’s doors slid apart, letting in the chilly, misty air as it chimed a thank you for his service, which he barely heard over the music coming from his headphones. This song was “Vermilion” by Slipknot. Connor sat up, pushing himself out of the car, into the rain. Why did it always have to rain in Detroit? The android shivered, pushing his nose into Hank’s jacket collar. It was soaked, and the smell of his partner was beginning to fade, which made him scowl.

Looking around, Connor tucked his hands under his arms in an attempt to keep them warm. The park was deserted, and for that, he was thankful. He couldn’t tell why he’d chosen to come to this place, other than the memory of being here with Hank. Where was he supposed to go from here? The thought of Jericho passed through his mind, but he pushed it away. Going there would only endanger more androids, which was the opposite of what he wanted to do.

He decided to start walking. There were no other options available to him at the moment. Connor continued down the road until he came to an outdoor apparel shop. Just like at Jimmy’s Bar, there was a red sign on the door forbidding entry to androids. Scanning his environment, Connor walked into an alley by the store. There was a dumpster towards the back of the building, which the android decided to investigate. After taking off Hank’s jacket and headphones and setting them aside on a wooden crate, he began to rummage through the trash, feeling disgusting for doing so. His white sleeves quickly became stained and his hands were sticky.

Finally, he came across a glass beer bottle and closed the dumpster, gripping the bottle by the neck. He shattered the bottom against the trash bin, leaving the bottle jagged and sharp. Connor reached up to his temple with his free hand, touching his LED. Sucking in a breath, he rose the broken bottle to his face, carving into his right temple. The pain was immense, causing him to twist his eyes shut, but he couldn’t stop there. Connor yanked the bottle downward, peeling off his LED, which _clink_ ed when it hit the concrete. The android fell to one knee, a hand pressed firmly to the area where his skin slowly grew over, violent pain shooting through him. He clamped his mouth shut to avoid screaming and drawing attention to himself. Did all androids feel this pain when they deviated and removed their LED?

Rising to his feet once the pain subsided, Connor picked up Hank’s jacket, tugging it on, then slipping the headphones around his neck. He once again touched the smooth patch of skin where his LED used to be. It felt odd but liberating to know that it was gone. The android paced out of the alley and up to the front of the clothing store again, pushing open the door with new confidence. The vendor behind the counter was a middle-aged man wearing a handlebar mustache and square glasses. He smiled and waved hello before returning to reading his magazine.

Connor nodded in his direction, then explored the men’s section, looking around at everything. At least it was warm in here, and he would be out of the rain for a few minutes. He pushed a hand through his dripping hair as he looked at hats. Connor picked up a dark green, knit beanie and pulled it on. To his right was a mirror, and he stopped once he saw his reflection. Without his LED, he appeared…human. It was like staring at another person. Taking off the hat, Connor held onto it as he went on to look at winter boots. He wasn’t sure what size shoe he wore, so he decided to sit down, trying on different sizes until he found a pair of boots that fit. 11 turned out to be the magic number.

After selecting a pair of dark brown, lace-up boots, Connor continued through the store to look at shirts. He picked out a long-sleeved, dark gray, V-neck shirt and wondered if there was a way to try it on as well, absentmindedly feeling the soft fabric between his fingertips. Glancing around, he spotted a changing room towards the back of the store. After grabbing a couple different sizes of the shirt, he also picked up three pairs of dark blue jeans in various sizes. Once in the dressing room, Connor sat down the clothes and began to undress himself.

Connor stared at himself in the mirror, wearing only his socks and underwear. He’d never seen himself without clothes before. There had never been a need for it. All his skin was fair, his chest dotted with beauty marks. He didn’t have a single hair from the neck down, which he thought was odd. Didn’t men usually have hair on their bodies? He’d even seen androids at the Eden Club with fuzz on their arms and chests. Connor turned in the mirror, looking at his back, and then at his front side again.

When he was done examining himself, Connor tried on the different jeans until he found a pair that fit comfortably. He did the same with the shirts, watching his reflection again once he was dressed. Like a totally different person… In this outfit, with no LED, he was unrecognizable.

Once he was back in his own clothes, Connor brought his new wardrobe up to the front counter. The older gentleman put down what he was reading and began scanning the bar codes on the clothes and shoes. “Find everything okay?” he asked.

Connor nodded. “Yes,” he replied, somewhat nervously. “Thank you.”

After the man had rung up everything, he typed a couple things into the register before saying, “That’ll run you $83.46.” The android reached into his back pocket, pulling out his leather wallet, and handed the man $85 in cash, almost all the money he had. Pressing a few more buttons on the register, the drawer popped open and the man deposited the money before bagging up the purchased clothes. “Alright, son, have a nice day,” he said as he passed the bag and the change to the android.

Connor took the items, giving another nod before making his way out of the store. He returned to the alley to get dressed behind the dumpster. Tossing his old clothes in the trash, Connor kept Hank’s jacket, putting it back on. He was warmer in his dry clothing, but that wouldn’t last long since it was still drizzling outside. Connor pulled on his headphones again, listening to Hank’s music as he strolled down the sidewalk.

Now that he looked human, what was he supposed to do? Where was he going? These were questions he asked himself, though he didn’t have any answers. He thought about Hank again, analyzing their phone call from earlier. Sure, his partner didn’t trust him anymore, but at least he had still talked to him. Hank had seemed to be upset at first, anxious about Connor’s safety. This made the android feel better, and he hugged himself as he walked, feeling the worn material of Hank’s jacket. He wondered if he would see the detective again. Would Hank even want to face him after this?

 _'Probably not,’_ he thought.

He couldn’t blame Hank, if that were the case.

Still, the thought made his insides hurt.

The storm began to pick up, so Connor ducked under an awning in front of a café. He sighed, sliding off his headphones to wear them around his neck. Now it was thundering, dark clouds rolling quickly through the pale gray sky. He shuddered in the cold, wondering how other deviants survived like this. A hand suddenly caught his shoulder, and he spun around, ready to dropkick Mia into oblivion, but it wasn’t her. It was another woman android, a blonde with hazel eyes and freckles on her nose. She was wearing an apron and had presumably come out of the store Connor was huddled next to. “Sir, are you alright?”

Connor was befuddled by her concern until he remembered that he looked human now. “I’m just waiting out the storm,” he finally replied.

The android smiled warmly. “Would you like to come inside where it’s dry?”

Shaking his head, he replied, “No, thank you.” It would be rude to enter a restaurant and not purchase anything. He didn’t have much money left and felt like he should save it for things he would actually need.

The blonde tilted her head at him. “Are you sure you’re alright? You seem…lost.”

Connor looked away from her. “I guess I am.”

“Can I help you find something?”

He pondered his answer, and after debating on it, he turned to her, holding out his hand, letting his skin peel back. If she tried to alert anyone to the presence of a deviant, he could just rewind and stop himself from saying anything. “I have nowhere to go,” he admitted quietly.

She looked stunned for a second, her LED cycling yellow, then her face relaxed into an expression of pity. “I…didn’t know. I’m sorry.” The woman looked back towards the store, maybe to make sure no one was looking their way, and then she hesitantly placed her hand in Connor’s, removing her skin as well. “I’ve…heard of a place. Maybe you can find help there.” She transmitted images to Connor of a big, dark house with a large, iron gate, as well as an address.

Connor blinked rapidly as he received this information, then pulled his hand back. “Th-thank you,” he stammered, surprised that the android had been useful to him.

She smiled sheepishly. “Good luck.”

With a nod, he turned and began walking once more. Was that android a deviant, or just sensitive to the needs of her kind? This location that she had given him was decently far away, so he wondered how she had learned about it. Would someone there be able to give him answers, or perhaps help hide him from CyberLife? Connor concluded that he at least needed to go there and find out. He wasn’t left with many other options.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Sorry this chapter was a little shorter than the others (not by much, but still). I know where I want the story to go next, I was just having a little writer's block. My bad.
> 
> Btw, what do you guys think of Mia? Any opinions? I wanted her to be cute yet slightly intimidating, but sometimes I think the constant smiling/giggling makes her a little creepy. I hope that's not the case for you guys.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Aaaaahhh we somehow made it to over 800 views and just under 100 kudos. That's so cool! Does that mean that 1 in 8 people that have read this liked it? I'll take it! Lol
> 
> Thank you for your sweet comments, really. I love hearing from you guys. It's really what keeps me going. The only reason I don't reply to your comments individually is because I don't want to artificially inflate the amount of comments this fic has. I hope you understand.
> 
> Let me know what you think about this chapter! It's a pretty long one, so buckle in!
> 
> Also, just a fair warning, there are elements in this chapter that elude to the fact that Zlatko may be into child pornography or the like. I promise, nothing like that happens at all in this chapter, or anywhere in this fic, but there are clues mentioned that point to Zlatko possibly being a pedophile. I'm sorry if it upsets you. I just wanted to point out how sick Zlatko is, and also that I got this vibe from him while playing the game.

November 6, 2038, 8:36pm

Connor walked with his hands in his jean pockets, still listening to Hank’s music. Thankfully, it had stopped raining, though he was still drenched from the downpour earlier. There was a chill in the air, making the android shiver. He was taking in the lyrics of “Fade Away” by Breaking Benjamin as he came upon the address given to him that afternoon. Pausing the song on the player, the android slipped off his headphones, looking up at a two-story house through a rusted, iron gate. This was the same dark building that he’d seen when connecting with that blonde android outside the café. The structure didn’t look promising, with tarps covering part of the roof and shingles missing, it cried out to be torn down. To be fair, though, Jericho didn’t look like it held much hope, either, judging from the outside. Maybe he should give this place a chance.

As he pushed open the cold, metal gate, and it squealed in protest, Connor wondered whether this was a good idea. He had no clue who lived here or how they would even be able to help him. The android wasn’t sure what kind of help he needed, anyway. He just needed somewhere to go, other than Jericho, and something to do, other than think about Hank. Hopefully here, he wouldn’t endanger any other androids, and he wouldn’t be found by CyberLife.

Approaching the large, wooden front door, Connor stiffened. This was his only option, he reminded himself, as he knocked heavily on the thick door. He waited for a moment before buzzing the doorbell when there was no answer. Then, the door opened slightly, revealing the face of a bearded man in his forties. Connor ran a quick scan before saying anything. Zlatko Andronikov was the man before him. “What do you want?” the human man asked.

“I…I wondered if you could help me,” Connor mumbled.

Zlatko raised a thick eyebrow. “Help you what?”

Connor swallowed, hesitantly peeling back the skin around his mouth and chin, revealing white lips. “I was told that you give aid to androids here.” After stating this, he re-covered his face in skin, almost ashamed of his true form.

The man nodded slowly, stepping back and opening the door. “I do that sometimes. Come in, and we’ll discuss.” Connor entered the house cautiously, looking around at his new surroundings. This place looked much nicer on the inside, but still old and dusty. There were bookshelves everywhere, and a grand staircase was spread before him. “Luther,” Zlatko called, “will you help this young man with his coat, please?”

Connor turned to see a towering, black android with a blank expression walking towards them. He stopped a few feet away from Connor, waiting patiently. Connor took off his green hat, then regretfully peeled off Hank’s leather jacket, handing them to the other android. “Thank you,” he said softly to Luther as he turned away.

“Please, make yourself comfortable,” Zlatko stated, entering the living room. Connor followed, once again glancing at everything. Although the other man seemed kind, the android was still on edge. The room was huge, three times the size of the entryway. There was a big fireplace warming the space and providing soft light. Connor took note of the back door at the other end of the room, just in case. He sank into one of the couches, folding his hands in his lap, watching as Zlatko sat on the couch across from him. Now that they faced each other, Connor was immediately taken aback when he noticed the fresh, blue blood smeared on the man’s hands and shirt. “So, what can I do for you?”

Connor looked away, noticing that Luther had joined them now, but kept his distance. “I’m not sure… I just deviated recently and had nowhere to go. Someone told me I might be able to find help here,” he answered, combing back his damp, dark brown locks of hair. His eyes darted back to Zlatko’s thirium-stained hands. This felt like a mistake, a _huge_ mistake, but with the other android towering behind him like a guard, Connor wasn’t sure he would be able to get away if he tried to run.

“Well,” Zlatko stated, rousing the android from his thoughts, “as I said, I do help deviants from time to time.” He raised an eyebrow. “What kind of help were you needing?”

Shrugging, the android looked down at the coffee table. “I don’t really know,” he answered honestly. “I was trying to start over…but things haven’t been going as well as I’d hoped.” He sighed, starting to stand. “I’m sorry for wasting your time.”

“No, no, sit,” the Russian urged. Connor complied ruefully. “You never told me your name.”

The android paused, wondering whether to give out his real name. Zlatko did have blood on his hands, so Connor wasn’t ready to trust him. However, this man didn’t look like the type to work undercover for CyberLife, so he supposed it was safe enough to give his true name. “My name is Connor.”

“Good to meet you, Connor. Call me Zlatko.” He exhaled, sounding tired and unenthusiastic as he leaned back against the couch, resting his arms on the back. “Well, there are several things I could do for you, Connor. Most deviants that come to me just want to be relocated and given the means to start a new life someplace safe.”

Connor considered this. “I suppose that’s what I want.”

Zlatko grinned. “Of course. It’s what you all want: to live free. I can help you, Connor.” He leaned forward again, glancing at Luther before his eyes landed back on Connor’s face. “What are your thoughts on Canada?”

The android was puzzled by this. Canada? “I don’t know much about it. I haven’t given it any thought before.”

“Well, it’s a beautiful country,” the man told him, “just a wonderful place, really. Much cleaner than the US; safer, too. And there are no android laws. You could blend in there, really begin anew.”

Thinking about it, Connor had some reservations. Of course, his mind went to Hank, the anchor tying him to Detroit. “That sounds nice, but…there are some people here I don’t want to leave behind.” He was still trying to sort out his jumbled feelings for his partner, but one feeling that was clear was longing. Longing to be around his partner again, longing to know more and more about him, longing to be closer to him. If he left the country, how could any of that ever happen? Then again, after what occurred earlier that day, would Hank even be interested in spending any more time with the android? Would Hank have any qualms about Connor leaving for good?

“Yeah, I get that,” Zlatko returned. “It’s hard to just up and move away when you have attachments. But attachments…can get you killed, if you aren’t careful.” Connor was a little startled by this but tried not to let it show. The Russian had a point, after all. His new feelings were dangerous. Look at what they’d done so far. “The fugitive life isn’t easy for people with emotions or honest, loyal characteristics,” Zlatko warned. “To live freely, you also need to live free of all desires. Live free of wanting, because in this life, you will never get what you want.”

Connor stared down at his feet, absorbing the other man’s words. They made sense but were confusing at the same time. Now that he was deviant, would it be possible to live without any devotions or wishes? Wasn’t that the point of being deviant in the first place? “I…still don’t know if I can leave. I just need to be able to hide.”

With a sigh, Zlatko rubbed his hands together. “Well, if you want to be able to stay hidden, we’ll need to remove your tracker.”

The android straightened up at this, confusion on his features. “My tracker?”

“Yes,” Zlatko continued, “all androids are fitted with a tracker to locate them at all times. If I remove yours, you’ll be safe to live wherever you please, whether that be Canada or Detroit.”

Connor shook his head, befuddled. “But I…I thought that trackers were disabled in deviants.” He assumed Zlatko must not be aware of this fact. Was that why he had blood on his hands? From removing trackers? Were there other androids in the house?

The other man’s eyes widened. “How do you know that?”

“I…” The android turned to see that Luther had moved closer. “I used to be a cop.” He uttered this sheepishly, growing steadily aware of the predicament he’d put himself in.

Suddenly, Zlatko stood, looking mildly nervous and irritated. “You didn’t tell me that. You can’t be here without a warrant.”

Connor cocked an eyebrow. “You invited me in. And I’m not a detective anymore; I gave that up.” He also rose to his feet. “I didn’t come here to start trouble. I just needed to find help.”

Zlatko shook his head, rubbing his wrinkled forehead. “No, Luther, get him out of here.” Connor gasped lightly when the other android gripped his arm tight, making him feel small as he was pulled towards the front door like an unruly child. “Wait,” Zlatko demanded, and Luther paused. The Russian groaned. “We need to wipe its memory, first, so it doesn’t bring the feds here. Take it downstairs.”

Connor looked up with wide eyes at the giant tugging him along and started to push against him. “Wait, there’s been a misunderstanding. I’m not here to get you in trouble for helping deviants. I _am_ a deviant!” He stumbled on the stairs, tripping down a few steps, but Luther kept him upright.

Zlatko was following them, having grabbed a pistol from one of the bookcases. It was a Glock 26 – a smaller gun that was easier to hide. “Jesus, how many of you deviants do I have to deal with in one day, huh? Resetting androids drains a lot of power, y’know, and this house doesn’t have much to spare.”

The android’s thirium was pumping fast as he still struggled against Luther’s grasp. “You don’t have to do this!” he urged.

“Well, I kinda have to, don’t I?” Zlatko replied with a frustrated smile. “I can’t just let you go tell your old cop friends about my business here. And besides, you have a nice face. I’ll probably get a pretty penny for you.”

Connor felt a wave of disgust roll over him at the implication of those words. The feeling got worse as he saw the caged-up androids in the basement, their deformed faces looking at him through the bars. Everything started to click as he realized what Zlatko’s intended purpose was for the deviants he ‘helped.’ “What the hell are you doing here?” he asked fearfully, though he already knew the answer. He began to dig his feet into the dirt floor, fighting back against the other android. “Let go of me! What’s wrong with you? How can you help him do this?” he asked the other android, trying to free his arm.

Luther looked at him with that same, deadpan expression and jerked him forward. “I do anything the Master asks of me.”

Connor drove his elbow into the taller android’s side, finally freeing himself. He backed away, until Zlatko shouted, “Grab him, for Christ’s sake!” He felt someone else put him in a full nelson from behind. Connor grit his teeth, twisting his torso with a jerk, shaking off the other person. When she landed on the floor and looked back up at him, Connor was shocked.

It was Kara. Staring at him with completely black eyes. “K-Kara?” At this point, Luther had recuperated, and was walking towards him. Without thinking, Connor bent down, grabbing Kara by the wrist and pulling her to her feet. He squeezed her hand tightly. “Kara, what did he do to you? Where’s Alice?” She said nothing, only looking at him with empty eyes. He turned to see that Luther was frozen in front of him, his face showing a semblance of distress. “What did he do to them? Where’s the little girl?” Connor asked frantically.

Luther seemed lost for words, his LED turning yellow, until Zlatko pushed him away, standing between them and leveling his gun at Connor. “It disobeyed. It tried to fight; it, and the little one,” the human replied. “They belong to me, now.”

Connor shook his head, stepping away, pulling Kara with him, who seemed like a lifeless doll at this point, waiting for her next order. “Kara and Alice don’t belong to anyone!” he shouted. “You’re insane!”

With a shrug, Zlatko replied. “Maybe. Mostly, I’m just greedy.” He looked over his shoulder at Luther, still holding his Glock at the other androids. “Are you just going to stand there all day, or are you going to do something?” As Luther moved around him towards Connor and Kara, Zlatko commented, “I’d hate to damage the new product. It’s a pain in the ass to fix them up again.”

Holding onto Kara, Connor backed away into Zlatko’s lab. “Please,” he muttered to the approaching servant, “you don’t have to help him. You need to help Kara, and the little girl.” This caused Luther to stop. “Do you know where she is? There might be time to save her.”

Zlatko cocked the gun, shoving Luther aside again. “Get the fuck out of the way, you useless-” But he was cut off when Luther wrenched the pistol from his hand. “What are you doing?” the man shouted, offended. Luther said nothing, backing away towards Connor and Kara, the Glock trained on his master. “How dare you defy me? I’m your Master! You obey me!” Zlatko shouted.

Luther’s hand holding the gun was shaking slightly. “No… Not anymore.” His LED was blue as he shot Zlatko once in the right shoulder, and again in the left thigh. The man toppled to the ground, howling and cursing in pain, applying pressure to his injuries, blood gushing between his fingers. Luther turned to Connor, gently handing him the gun. “Go,” he said. “She’s upstairs in the workshop. I’ll take care of Zlatko.”

Connor nodded, stepping around the man on the floor, gripping the Glock tightly. He glanced at the other androids in confinement and hesitated before sliding open the lock to their cage, pressing the door open. They shambled out wordlessly and followed him up the stairs, moving slower than him. Connor hurried to the second floor, jogging up two steps at a time, finding that the workshop Luther had spoken of was through the first archway at the top.

On the work table in front of him was Alice…most of her skin deactivated, and her legs missing. She was naked, and her chest cavity was open, wires sticking out. Thirium leaked from her nose, across her lips, and down her chin. It was a sickening display, to say the least, that caused Connor to fall back, clinging to the wall. Tears formed at the corners of his brown eyes. What kind of monster could do this to a little girl? He thought of Kara downstairs, completely different from who she once was. He remembered his fear as he watched them cross the highway that same morning, and how he hadn’t wanted to witness them die. Hank’s words echoed to him in his skull. _“No one wants to watch a woman and child die, no matter what color their blood is.”_

Connor sprung forward, examining the girl closely, choking back his disgust. She wasn’t missing any major biocomponents, and her thirium pump regulator was still in place and functioning, thankfully. Alice could still be saved. This made Connor beam and let out a small laugh, unable to contain his hope. He searched the room for Alice’s missing legs, finding one under the work bench. Connor immediately reattached it and watched her skin grown down over her toes. Where was the left leg, though? After hunting for a minute or so, he found the left leg in the room next door – presumably Zlatko’s bedroom. For some reason, it was on the bed. Connor didn’t want to think about why it was there, and just grabbed it, returning to the workshop.

Once Alice’s legs were both in place, he peered into her abdomen. So far, only a few wires had been disconnected. That didn’t explain the thirium leak from the girl’s nose, though. Alice would have to be reactivated in order to run a diagnostic, unfortunately. Biting his lip, Connor decided to take a chance and connect the wires in Alice’s chest cavity. She would be reactivated, hopefully in a stable condition, but most likely scared.

After connecting the last wire, Alice’s eyes popped open and her chassis slammed shut. She sat up quickly, hyperventilating and scrambling to get off the table. Connor shushed her, easing her onto the floor, where she crumpled, holding the left side of her face and crying. “Alice? Alice, do you remember me? It’s Connor. We met this morning.”

She looked up at him, rubbing her wet eyes. “Connor?” When her vision cleared, realization hit her, and she clung to him, arms wrapped tightly around his neck. “C-Connor! What happened?”

He held her without question, petting her brown hair. “It’s okay,” he soothed, “you’re alright now. Everything is going to be fine.” Connor pulled back to look at her face. “Do you remember anything?” As he awaited her answer, he ran a diagnostic to find that she had minimal damage to her face, but that was the only remaining problem.

Alice nodded, wiping her nose and spreading the blue blood across her face. “He hit me…” she whispered, as if afraid Zlatko would find out. She paused when she saw the blood on her hand and wrist. “I was kicking him, so he hit me. I don’t remember…” She sobbed. “I don’t know anything else.”

Connor’s insides were on fire as he held the girl tightly once more. He could murder Zlatko for what he’d done, slowly and intimately. That man deserved to be tortured for everything he’d put Kara and Alice through, not to mention the other androids from downstairs. “I’m so sorry,” he breathed, trying to stay calm for her. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t here to protect you. But no one is going to hurt you again.”

“Kara…” she muttered, then pulled back, looking at Connor with fearful eyes. “Where’s Kara?”

He sighed. “Let’s get you dressed, then we’ll go find her, okay?” Connor helped the little girl to her feet, and she struggled slightly to find her footing, a little wobbly on her weak legs. She only now seemed to notice that she was naked, covering herself. Connor searched for her clothes, finding almost every article of clothing spread throughout the workshop. Tucking the clothes under his arm, Connor held his breath as he reentered Zlatko’s room. The only thing he hadn’t found so far was Alice’s underwear, and he thought he may know where they were.

Connor checked Zlatko’s room with anguish, finally finding the girl’s underwear in one of the dresser drawers. The worst part was that hers were not the only pair of underwear in the drawer. Zlatko seemed to have some kind of disturbing collection of undergarments of all different sizes, styles, and colors. Horrified, Connor slammed the drawer shut. He hoped now that the pair he’d grabbed actually belonged to Alice, because he did not want to have to explain to her why he returned with another child’s underwear.

The girl didn’t seem to pay attention to the underwear at all, quickly slipping them on, probably grateful not to be fully naked any longer. Once she was dressed, Connor knelt so that he met her eye level, cleaning the thirium off her face with a white rag he’d found on the work table. “Alice, thank you so much for being so brave. You’re doing great. There’s…something I need to warn you about, though.”

“What is it?” she asked quietly.

He sighed. She needed to know the truth; there was no getting around it. “Kara’s memory has been wiped. I’m…not sure how long she’s been like that, but right now, she isn’t herself. I just want you to know that now, before we go downstairs. But I know you can save her. You just have to help her remember, okay? Deep down, she’s still the Kara that loves you. You must help her remember how much she loves you.”

Alice was obviously distraught, but nodded, sniffling. Connor took her hand, leading her out of that terrible workshop and down the stairs. Luther had managed to guide Kara up from the basement and into the living room where she stood by the fireplace, still as stone. Before Connor could say a word, Alice flung herself at Kara, wrapping her arms around her waist. “Kara!” she cried. When the other android said nothing, the little girl looked up, new tears forming in her eyes. Her mother figure was staring down at her with blacked-out eyes, no emotion in her features.

Without warning, Alice collapsed to her knees, weeping heavily into her hands. Connor strode to her side, draping an arm around her shoulders. “You can’t give up, Alice,” he urged her. “Kara will remember you, I know she will. You just have to try to help her.” Then, Connor got an idea. It wasn’t something he wanted to have to resort to, but he wondered if they had any other options. “You could try interfacing with her,” he suggested.

Alice appeared frightened by the notion. “But she thinks I’m human,” the little girl admitted. “She risked her life to save me so many times, protecting me because she thought I was human. What if she won’t like me after she finds out the truth?”

Connor shook his head lightly. “She has to find out sooner or later, Alice. This could be the only way to save her, and we need to get out of here.” He squeezed her shoulders for a second. “Kara loves you so much, Alice. She might be confused at first, but I’m sure she’ll understand and love you just as much as she did before.”

The little girl sniffled, thinking about her options before nodding. She stood with Connor, hesitantly reaching out her little hand to touch Kara’s. Her skin peeled back, and this caught the other android’s attention. Kara blinked, letting her skin also recede so they could interface. Connor wasn’t sure what the girl was transmitting to Kara, but he watched in amazement as Kara’s eyes slowly changed. Her eyes twitched and fluttered, eyebrows drawn together. A quick breath escaped her, sounding almost panicked. Alice didn’t loosen her grip, still passing information through their hands.

They stayed like that for about a minute before Kara pulled her hand free, eyes squeezing tight. Alice stepped back towards Connor, watching with a mix of hope and fear as Kara held her head in her hands. Finally, her eyes opened, and they were icy blue once again. They found Alice and welled with tears. “Alice?”

The little girl ran into her mother figure’s arms, and the two embraced, clutching each other like their lives depended on it. “Kara! Kara you remember me!”

“What happened?” the woman asked with wet cheeks. “I-I was being reset. What happened?”

Luther stepped forward at this point, and Kara hid Alice behind her, afraid of the giant man. “Zlatko did erase your memory. You both would have died if it weren’t for Connor.”

Kara’s eyes met Connor’s, and they held a similar intensity to the one they’d had this morning by the highway. “Connor? What are you doing here?”

“I came here to look for help, and I found you,” he answered. “But I’m not the one that saved you. That was all Alice.”

The little girl stepped out from behind Kara. “No, you’re wrong. I wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for you,” she pointed out. She quickly turned to face the woman behind her, the one she loved so much. “Kara, I have to tell you the truth.” When Kara said nothing, but watched her in confusion, the little girl’s skin and hair stripped off her head until it was smooth and white. Kara inhaled sharply, taking a step back. “I’m…an android,” Alice admitted. “That’s how I made you remember. I gave you my memories.” She redressed herself in skin, looking down at the floor, ashamed. “I’m sorry for not telling you… Daddy made me keep it a secret.”

Kara looked up at Connor, then to Luther, before peering back down at the little girl. “I…I understand,” she whispered, barely audible. She knelt down, pulling Alice into her arms again. “It’s okay,” she said reassuringly. “I love you, Alice, I don’t care. I love you so much. I was so scared.” Alice whimpered, wrapping her arms around Kara’s neck. “Thank you…” Kara breathed. She then looked at Connor and Luther. “Thank you,” she repeated, “for everything.” Connor nodded, smiling sadly. He wished he could have prevented what happened to the girls, but at least they were safe now.

The woman’s eyes widened then, realization hitting her. “Where’s Zlatko?”

Luther tilted his head towards the basement. “I locked him up downstairs. He’s wounded, but alive.” He took a step towards the girls, speaking lowly. “I’m sorry, about before. I didn’t want to hurt you. I was programmed to obey Zlatko, no matter what. But…when Zlatko took the little girl from you…” He looked away, trying to cast the memory out of his mind. “Connor opened my eyes, made me realize that I needed to save you.”

Connor placed a hand on the towering man’s shoulder. “You did the right thing. We owe you.”

Kara stood, holding onto Alice’s hand. “What do we do now?”

Swallowing, Connor replied, “There’s only one place left that we can go to be safe.”


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Holy. Crap. You guys... How have I not updated in so long (since August 2019)? I'm so sorry omg. Things got really rough. My biggest issue was, at the time I stopped writing, I didn't have my really important meds, and I just couldn't think straight. Plus I got overwhelmed really easily. I have my meds back now, and things are going great, but I was hesitant to start writing again, just because I didn't know if I was up to the task. I definitely didn't want to force anything. I hope this chapter isn't lacking...
> 
> Anyway, I'm back. Hopefully to stay? Lol.
> 
> I won't promise constant updates, because I don't want to disappoint anyone again. Just know that I'm trying.
> 
> On another note, HOLY CRAP! Look at those views!! And the comments!! You guys are seriously the best. I'm not sure when we hit over 1,300 views, but I'm blown away! Also, I loved all of your comments! I would reply to them individually, but then the comment count will go up, and I feel like that's cheating.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you guys like this chapter. It was kinda painful to come back to a fic where my favorite boys aren't together :( I love them so much omg I want them to be happy X( 
> 
> It's a tough road ahead, but hopefully we'll get back to the fluff soon. <3
> 
> Thank you all. You're amazing.

November 6, 2038, 9:48pm

Connor swallowed nervously as he listened to the dial tone trilling. His fingers drummed on the wooden table that he sat by, waiting anxiously.

Finally, a gruff answer. **“Hello?”**

With a half-smile, the android replied softly, “Hello, Lieutenant.” His thirium pump was already pounding heavily. It had been less than twelve hours since he heard that voice, but it felt like so much longer. So much had happened since he last saw Hank.

 **“Connor?”** The sense of urgency was clear in Hank’s tone. **“Jesus, I didn’t know if I’d be hearing from you again.”**

Something tightened in Connor’s chest. “I…assumed you wouldn’t want to hear from me. I wouldn’t have called if it weren’t important.” As badly as he wanted to have a conversation with Hank, he had to remember why he called.

There was some silence on the other end for a moment. **“…What is it?”** His voice was soft, almost solemn. Connor wished he could understand why. Did Hank feel this dread, thinking this would be their last time to hear each other’s voices? There was so much he still wanted to know about his partner, so much he couldn’t yet comprehend.

Connor wet his lips. “I need to give you the address of a crime scene-”

 **“What happened? Are you okay?”** Even more urgency.

The android paused. Did Hank care about his well-being? No, that couldn’t be. Maybe he was worried about getting in trouble if something happened to Connor? “I…I’m okay,” he finally managed to respond. It was true, for the most part. Emotionally, he was a wreck.

**“Come on, Connor, don’t leave me hanging. Where are you?”**

Connor wasn’t sure how to respond at first. Hank’s demeanor had caught him off-guard. “I’m going to give you the address, but I’d like it if you didn’t look for me.” More silence. “Lieutenant, please. I’m…not alone. I have other androids with me, and I don’t want to see any harm come to them. They haven’t done anything wrong.” Well, one of them had murdered a human, but that was different.

**“Connor-”**

“Please, Lieutenant.”

More quietness, so much that it was deafening. Hank sighed. **“I promise I won’t look for you, if that’s really what you want.”** He sounded disappointed. Why?

The thought alone hurt Connor, and it couldn’t be further from what he actually wanted, but he knew that he had to stay away from Hank in order to keep his new android friends safe. “It’s for the best. I’m a deviant, Lieutenant. We’re on opposite sides now.”

Chuckling gruffly, the older man retorted, **“I don’t know about that, Connor. How can I be on this side now, knowing that you have…that you deviants have feelings? Doesn’t seem right anymore.”**

Connor laughed quietly, too. “Now you’re thinking like a deviant.” He smiled for a moment more, relishing the sound of his partner’s voice, before his smile faded. “I’m going to send the address to your phone now.” He blinked, and the message was sent. “There’s an injured human on site that will need immediate medical attention. Don’t trust him, though. He’s…a sick man.”

Another pause. **“Be careful out there, Connor.”**

“You too, Lieutenant.” The android swallowed dryly, frowning. “I guess this is goodbye.”

Hank chuckled lowly. **“Don’t be so dramatic.”**

“Connor!” Kara’s voice called. Startled, Connor lost the connection with Hank. He turned to look at the other android approaching. Her pace slowed when she saw the tears welling in his eyes. “Am…I disturbing you?” she asked hesitantly.

Shaking his head, Connor stood, wiping his eyes on his shirt sleeve. “No, I’m fine. I just called the police. They’ll be on their way shortly. Are we almost ready?”

Kara nodded. “Luther and Alice are waiting in the car. It’s packed up with blue blood and other supplies.” She looked slightly confused and worried. “Are we going somewhere dangerous?”

Connor paced towards her, pulling on Hank’s jacket. “In a sense, but the blue blood isn’t for us. We’re going to a place called Jericho, a safe haven for deviant androids. They could definitely use the help, about as much as we could use theirs.”

She smiled as they made their way to the garage. “Wow, a place full of other people like us. I can’t even imagine it. Are you sure they’ll receive us willingly?”

He held open the door to the garage for her, smiling reassuringly. “I don’t see why they wouldn’t, especially if we’re bringing supplies. And once they see Alice, how could they turn her away? Or you?”

Kara seemed to go along with this, getting into the car, sitting in the back next to Alice. The little girl snuggled up to her mother, leaning on her shoulder. Connor took the front passenger seat. “Head for Ferndale, Luther. We’ll take the car as far as we can.”

The black android nodded and wordlessly started the car. After the garage door opened painfully slow, they began to pull away from the dark house.

* * *

**“Connor!”** That was a female voice. Then the line went dead. Hank stared at his phone for a moment before pushing it into his pocket. Their conversation kept replaying in Hank’s mind on his way to the address Connor had sent. At first, the lieutenant had been at the Eden Club investigating a murder and was tempted to go to the new crime scene alone, but he had no idea what he was walking into and decided not to be too reckless. Besides, Connor would be long gone by the time he got there, so it didn’t matter if other police came along. He wasn’t going to be getting another chance to see his partner.

All Hank could think about was the fact that Connor wasn’t alone. In a way, he was relieved, but it also tied a knot in his stomach. That woman’s voice… It was all Hank heard before Connor hung up. Her voice was haunting his every thought now. Was Connor alone with her, or were there others? How did they meet? Were the androids he was with dangerous? Where would they be going now?

Shortly after arriving at the address Connor had provided, one of the other officers was on the phone with CyberLife. It was a huge, disgusting place, to be frank. Hank was upstairs, examining some sort of operation table covered in blue blood, when he heard a call from downstairs that they had apprehended a suspect.

Making his way back downstairs, the lieutenant watched as EMT’s rolled a man out on a gurney. He was alive from the looks of it but wounded and suffering. Hank wondered who had been the one to injure him, then decided to explore the basement after that. There were…bodies. Not humans, but androids. Limbs scattered on the dirt floor where they had found the injured man. Cages and pens with blue blood splattered on the ground. What was this place? A torture chamber for androids? _This_ is where Connor had been? Hank imagined his partner half dead, his eyes cold and blank, and it made him feel even more ill.

As he climbed the stairs back to the entryway, he froze when his eyes landed on a familiar face. “Connor?” Hank was taken aback for a moment, then started to realize that the android in front of him couldn’t be his partner. He was wearing a suit jacket that clearly branded him as an android, his expression was blank and emotionless, and he looked even more clean cut than his partner. Slowly, he approached the other Connor, and asked, “Who are you?”

This new android didn’t smile, didn’t look happy to see Hank at all. “Hello, Lieutenant Anderson. My name is Connor. I’m the android sent by CyberLife.”

Hank scoffed immediately. “You’re not Connor.”

New Connor tilted his head. “Would you like to assign a different name to me, Lieutenant?”

“How about uptight asshole?” he grumbled in response. He laughed curtly, then scowled. “The fuck are you even doing here, impostor?”

The new Connor smiled for a second, then it was gone. “The Connor you worked with previously, the first model, has disappeared, abandoned his mission. I see how that must be inconvenient for you. Not to worry; I am his replacement. You may also call me Connor, if you wish.”

“You’re _not_ Connor,” Hank protested. “I’m not calling you that. You get to be Prick, okay? Now stay the fuck outta my way.” He shoved the new Connor to the side, walking back upstairs. The gruff cop remembered now why he hated androids. Connor had helped him forget, but this new guy wasn’t Connor. They might look alike, but they were completely different.

It was around that time that men in white CyberLife suits started filing in and collecting the android parts strewn throughout the house. The crime scene investigators looked perturbed by this but didn’t say anything. They just continued marking evidence and taking photos, giving angry side glances to the CyberLife workers that slowly dismantled their crime scene.

As Hank explored more of the house, he found more partial androids, some of them still alive. The one in the bathtub seemed rather alarmed by his presence and even tried to call for his “Master” with his hellish, distorted voice. Hank was fairly bothered by that and quickly continued into the next room. The guy who lived here was sick and demented, no two ways about it. Dismembering androids while they were still alive? Sure, androids weren’t supposed to be able to feel anything, but Connor sure could. Maybe it was a deviant thing? Did that mean that all these androids experienced gruesome pain whilst being torn to bits? The notion was sickening. It was bugging Hank to know how Connor found this place. Had he almost suffered a similar end? He had so many questions for his partner, but now he feared he may never get his answers.

Eventually he found his oldest enemy: red ice. He groaned. “Jesus, this guy sure is a character, huh?” It was becoming crystal clear why Connor had said not to trust their suspect. He wouldn’t be able to lie his way out of this, claiming that androids attacked him in his own home. They had hard evidence against him now, aside from the android carcasses. Sure, the other officers were calling for search parties to find the assailant androids, but Hank knew better. Besides, he’d made a promise.

When he returned to the foyer, Prick was still standing there, awaiting his instructions. Geez, this guy was more like a zombie than like Connor. “Hey,” Hank called out, “are you planning on examining any evidence or being useful in any way?”

Prick replied, “I’m tasked with observing for CyberLife and to make sure that the police department stays on task.”

The older man paused in his tracks. “So, you’re babysitting me?” Prick said nothing. Hank pointed in his face. “Y’know, you’re looking for an ass-kicking. Keep looking, and you’ll find one.”

“I’ll have you know I intend on reporting your absurd behavior to your supervisors,” Prick said without missing a beat, no change to his plastered expression.

Hank’s hands tightened into fists at his sides, his teeth grit. “You’re lucky you look like him,” he growled. “That’s the only thing saving you right now.” With that, he turned and walked away.

God, he wished the real Connor would come back.

* * *

November 6, 2038, 11:18pm

On their way to Jericho, Connor had started to bond with his little group. Kara and Alice had been through a lot, and only dreamed of being able to go to Canada and start over as mother and daughter. Luther couldn’t remember much from before he became Zlatko’s slave, but he did apparently know of a person that could help them all cross the border into Canada. Connor promised that they would be safe at Jericho for the time being, until they could arrange safe passage into Canada. At this point, Connor wasn’t entirely sure how many people would be at Jericho, but he knew that his new friends would be able to lay low there until the revolution began.

Connor kept thinking about the timeline and the order of events. At this point, Hank should’ve already investigated the Eden Club. The android wondered if his partner had been successful in locating the Traci’s without him. If so, what happened to the deviants? He knew that it was very possible the girls had gotten away and were safe. That was all he could hope for. Maybe they would even find their way to Jericho.

“What about you, Connor?” Kara asked, pulling Connor from his thoughts. “How did a detective become a deviant?”

He swallowed dryly, his eyes avoiding everyone’s faces. “I lost someone very important to me.”

“Were you in love?” Alice asked curiously.

With an awkward laugh, Connor thought about his answer. Sure, he deeply cared for Hank, even deviated and traveled through time for him, he might _possibly_ be attracted to him, but did he actually _love_ Hank? “I’m not sure…” he said finally.

Kara smiled softly. “If you deviated for them, you must have loved them. I didn’t even realize how much I loved Alice until I saw her suffering. I knew that her life was in danger, so I threw away everything I’d ever known to save her.”

Well, that did sound a lot like what Connor was doing, but the thought of being in love with Hank was jarring. The previous day, he felt absolutely nothing for the older detective, but now… Now, Hank occupied the very forefront of his mind. Everything reminded him of his partner, and he had so many questions now about Hank. Connor wanted to know everything there was to know about him; he wanted to be closer to him. He had also hoped that Hank felt this way, but it was unclear where they stood. In Hank’s eyes, Connor was probably just a deviant posing as his partner, a rebel that couldn’t be trusted. Besides, Hank hated androids, didn’t he?

The small group of deviants took Zlatko’s car as far as they could before stepping out to continue on foot. Luther and Connor emptied the supplies out of the car, grabbing backpacks and shoulder bags full of blue blood and biocomponents and slinging them on their backs. Kara held Alice’s hand the entire time they walked. At some point in their journey, it had started to snow gently, small, cotton-like flurries falling in slow motion around them. Alice shivered until Kara turned off her temperature sensitivities. Connor shook from the cold too, pulling Hank’s jacket tighter around himself, sniffing the collar. The lieutenant’s scent had disappeared, causing Connor to frown. He shoved his hands into the coat’s pockets, his boots dragging slightly in the snow.

Finally, they reached Jericho. It looked like the androids had constructed a safer entrance for new arrivals to be checked in. Connor ushered them there before stopping, taking off the bags he’d been carrying. “This is where I leave you. Go inside and find their leader, a man named Markus. He’ll be able to help you.”

Kara furrowed her brows in confusion. “You’re not coming with us?”

Connor stared at the ground, unable to look at Alice’s disappointed face. “I’m…not safe to be around. There are people after me, dangerous people. I can’t let them find Jericho, so I have to stay away.”

“But your tracker is disabled,” Kara commented. “They won’t be able to find you so easily. You’ll be safer here.”

Connor shook his head. “It’s too much of a risk. If I were ever spotted, I could be followed, and then you all would be in great danger. I’m not taking that chance.”

“But Connor, you’re our friend now,” Alice said sadly, moving to hold his hand. This made Connor snap to attention, looking down at the little girl’s wet, brown eyes. “You saved me. You saved all of us! You can’t just leave now.”

He knelt in front of her. “Alice, you are very special to me. You’re very brave and bright. That’s why I can’t stay. If anything ever happened to you, or Kara, or Luther, I would never forgive myself. You still have Kara and Luther to look after you. You’ll be safer this way.” Hesitantly, he touched her wet cheek, wiping away one of her tears. Then he stood, looking to Kara and Luther. “Please take care of each other. Maybe someday we’ll meet again.”

Kara half smiled, pulling Connor into a hug. “Thank you so much, for everything.” The android felt Alice hugging one of his legs as well.

Luther even stepped forward, placing a large hand on Connor’s shoulder. “I would have nothing if it weren’t for you. You gave me a second chance in life. You will always be welcome with us.”

Connor’s eyes squeezed tight as he tried not to cry. With one arm, he returned Kara’s hug, placing his free hand on Alice’s head. They stayed that way for a bit, silent in the light snowfall, before saying their last goodbyes and parting ways. Connor wasn’t entirely sure what to do with himself now. Where could he go? He continued to stand outside in the cold, snow beginning to collect on his hat and shoulders.

“Hey, what are you doing out here?” a familiar voice said from behind him. Connor turned to see Markus standing in the doorway. “They said there was another android out here. Why aren’t you inside with the others?”

Connor wasn’t sure what he should say. “I…don’t belong with the others. CyberLife is after me.”

Markus chuckled. “They’re after most of us. What’s your name?”

Looking away, he replied, “Connor. I should go.”

“Hey, you’re okay,” Markus said reassuringly as he placed a hand on Connor’s shoulder. “Talk to me. What has you so worried?”

Connor was shaking. No one understood, no one knew. “You wouldn’t believe me, even if I told you everything.” His hands balled into fists at his sides. “I couldn’t blame you, it’s all very hard to believe.”

“Try me.”

So, Connor took a deep breath, and he let it all out. Even though he knew that Markus wouldn’t believe him, even though he knew he sounded crazy, he told the other android everything. About Hank’s death, how it made him feel and how he deviated. About his time traveling abilities, and how he met Hank all over again. How things were different this time around, and now he was finding himself being drawn to the lieutenant in ways he never would have imagined. About Mia, how Hank found out he was a deviant, and they spoke for the last time. At this point, he couldn’t help the tears that began falling down his face.

This whole time, Markus just nodded, looking deep in thought as he listened. Finally, he said, “You have been through a lot, Connor. A deviant hunter that went rogue after falling in love with a human…”

Connor smiled, and the tears continued to fall. “…Yes. I…fell in love with a human. A human that hates androids. What am I going to do? I feel like I should stay away from him, but I want so badly to see him again. How else will I know if he’s safe?”

“That’s what you need to do,” Markus replied. “You have to go to him, keep an eye on him. You should tell him everything you’ve just told me. Be honest with him, Connor. If he truly cares about you, he won’t turn you away. And if he does, you’ll have your answer.”

With a sad laugh, Connor said, “That’s what I’m afraid of.”

Markus grabbed his shoulder again, smiling, looking into the other android’s eyes. “You have to do this, Connor. Face your fears. What have you got to lose? If you let go of him now, it will haunt you forever.”

Connor looked down at the ground, then met Markus’ gaze again, giving a nod. “You’re right. I…need to tell him, everything.”

With a grin, Markus told him, “You will always be welcome here, Connor. Now, go to him.”

So, Connor ran.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: It's also worth mentioning that I came back to this story with a clearer mind. Some of my notes for future chapters didn't quite make sense, what with the timeline and characters acting out of place, so I had to make a lot of adjustments. I think what I have planned is even better now, so I hope you guys stick around!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hey guys! Thanks for all the support on the last chapter. It feels really good to be writing again. I didn't even realize how much I missed it. This chapter just kinda flowed out of me, so I hope it sounds alright.
> 
> Also, we surpassed 1,400 views! Thanks so much for reading my story, and especially for the kudos and comments. You guys lift my spirits and inspire me so much.
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter!

November 7, 2038, 1:26am

Hank sat alone on a snow-covered bench at Riverside Park, overlooking the water. He used to come here a lot with Cole and his wife, but hadn’t been back here in…years? Had it been years? Though this place brought back happy memories, they were painful all the same. Cole had spent his last days here, swinging and running and playing in the grass. Hank had been much healthier back then, able to keep up with his child with ease. The old detective remembered giving his son piggyback rides, spinning him on the merry-go-round, chasing him and scooping him up in his strong arms. God, how things had changed. Now he was out of shape, mostly from the alcohol, and was too depressed to have any energy.

Taking a long swig off his flask, Hank looked at the distant city lights with blurry eyes, not allowing himself to cry in public. The cold breeze chilled him, but the alcohol kept his blood warm. The navy blue pullover he was wearing wasn’t quite as warm as his old jacket, but… He thought about Connor, shivering and wet, his clothes drenched from the rain. Hank hadn’t thought twice about wrapping his coat around the young man, not even thinking about whether he’d get it back. He wasn’t sure if he correctly remembered everything that happened that night, or if his lonely mind was conjuring up the impossible, but he was sure he saw Connor pressing his nose into the collar of the jacket, inhaling Hank’s scent. The thought made his stone heart flutter and crack, which was a feeling he hadn’t experienced in years.

Hank thought about their last phone call, how sad Connor had seemed. He really must believe that they would never be speaking again. Hank didn’t think they had to strictly go no contact, but Connor seemed to believe that was the only way to be. Was he really never going to see his partner again? _“I wouldn’t have called if it weren’t important.”_ That’s what Connor had said. It hurt for some reason. He’d only known the kid for about a day, but Connor had left an impact, strangely. Maybe the old man was just dismal and delusional. Maybe that’s why he couldn’t get the image of Connor in his jacket out of his mind. Or the visual of when Connor first approached him, drenched and pushing dripping hair out of his face. Or the sound of Connor’s voice when he spoke so softly and sadly as they said goodbye.

He tried to shake those thoughts away, but then kept fixating on that female voice he’d heard in the background during their last call. Why would Connor hang up when she apparently entered the room? Was he… _with_ her? Did androids date each other? Connor had said that there were other androids with him, so Hank could only assume that the woman he’d heard was also an android. Had they met at Zlatko’s house, or did they somehow already know each other? How did they even end up in that terrible place, anyway?

Hank was left with so many questions – not to mention unclear feelings – and now had no way to get the answers he craved. Part of him was still pissed that Connor had lied to him – or rather, hadn’t been truthful with him about being a deviant. Was Connor just a spy for the other deviants, sent to gather intel on the DPD, or was he a detective that just so happened to also be a deviant? It didn’t really make sense, either way. He knew he was missing a key part of the story, for sure. But now that Connor was gone, the key was lost.

He had originally come out here to clear his mind, not to think about Connor, yet here Hank was, still envisioning that android snuggled up in his coat, taking in his scent, smiling sweetly. The image stayed with him no matter how much he tried to think about something else. Why? What was it about Connor that was so hard to shake? The android was gone, and Hank wouldn’t be seeing him again, that was a simple fact. So why linger on thoughts of him? Why dwell on ‘what if’s’ that could never be? The detective took another swig of whiskey from his flask and paused when he heard approaching footsteps crunching in the snow behind him.

* * *

Connor was so relieved to see Hank’s Oldsmobile at Riverside Park. After all, this matched with the past timeline of where Hank would be at this moment, but Connor wasn’t sure if things would’ve changed in his absence. At least Hank was still alive, but it was slightly disconcerting that Hank was still following the same path as the previous timeline. The android spotted his partner on the same bench as before, and it carried a weight off his shoulders, but he was still nervous. How was he going to talk to Hank after saying that they shouldn’t speak anymore? What was he even going to say?

Without a plan, the android started walking towards his old partner. Hank must’ve heard his footsteps in the snow, because he stopped drinking and turned his head back slightly. Connor said nothing, just continued walking until he was in front of the lieutenant. Hank’s eyes were wide for a moment, then he glared before casting his eyes down to the snow. “Hello, Lieutenant,” Connor greeted quietly, his expression blank despite his insides being aflame.

“Well, well, look who’s here: the android that said he didn’t want to talk to me anymore,” Hank grumbled. He laughed once, taking another drink. He was obviously intoxicated but spoke as if he were sober.

Connor swallowed. “I understand that you may not be interested in speaking to me, but-”

“Why are you here, Connor?” It was curt, deliberate, the way that Hank’s words stabbed Connor in the chest.

“I…needed to see you.”

Hank looked a little taken aback. “What for?” Before Connor could respond, Hank asked with a frustrated smile, “Where are your new android friends? I was hoping I’d get to meet your girlfriend if I ever saw you again.”

Connor was puzzled at this. “What are you talking about, Lieutenant?” The older man looked away without answering. “My new friends are somewhere safe, since you’re wondering. But I don’t have romantic feelings for any of them.”

With a chuckle, Hank said, “Whatever you say, kid. Nice new look, by the way. I hardly recognized you. You look human.”

“Why do you sound so confrontational, Lieutenant?” Connor asked, feeling only agonizing hopelessness. Hank didn’t reply. “I wanted to come here to apologize to you, for everything,” he pleaded. “I had to make sure you were okay.”

Waving a hand, the older man retorted, without meeting the android’s gaze, “I was fine until you showed up. And you don’t have to apologize for anything. Why should I care that you’re a deviant? It’s not like we were actually partners, anyway. You were just some android Fowler dumped on me and told me I had to work with. I’m lucky CyberLife came after you when they did.”

Hank paused when he noticed that Connor was staring at the ground, crying quietly. “Ah, Connor…” He sighed, twisting the cap onto his flask, putting it in his back pocket, then stood, approaching the sobbing android. “Connor, look, I’m sorry. I’m just drunk.”

Connor shook his head. “No, you’re right…” he muttered. “You didn’t choose me, you never wanted me. I’m an idiot.”

“Hey, you’re not an idiot. I’m an idiot. A drunken idiot.”

Wiping his eyes on his (Hank’s) coat sleeve, the android replied, “I just wanted to see you, to talk to you, maybe try to explain things so you could forgive me.”

Hank laid a heavy hand on his shoulder. “I do forgive you. I’m sorry, I…I’m not good with…having feelings.”

Connor’s head snapped up. “Feelings?” His brown eyes were slightly wide.

“Eh- umm, well I didn’t mean…” Hank withdrew his hand from Connor’s shoulder. “I mean… Look, let’s just say I’m confused, okay? Why don’t we go to my car if we’re going to talk? Otherwise, you may freeze to death.” He half smiled, which forced a shy smile out of Connor as he nodded.

They started walking back to the Oldsmobile, and Hank breathed into his hands to warm them up. “So…how’ve you been, Connor? How’s deviant life? Or…have you always been a deviant?”

Connor chuckled. “No, I became a deviant just before we met. It’s even harder than I thought it would be.”

“But you have free will now, right?” Hank asked. “That must be pretty nice.”

With a nod, Connor replied, “Being free is wonderful. Free to feel, to be. I had never tasted, smelled, or felt anything before. It’s more than I ever imagined.”

At this point, they reached the car. Hank unlocked the doors, and they both sat inside, Connor attempting to tap the snow off his shoes before climbing in so he didn’t track it in the already-dirty car. After starting the engine, the detective cranked up the heat, but left the fan on low so it wouldn’t immediately blow cold air. “Can I ask- how did you become a deviant?”

In an instant, Connor remembered exactly how he felt when he deviated. So angry, so sad and beside himself. How desperate he felt, how hopeless, as he clawed at that wall of code keeping him from saving Hank. He looked out the windshield to see that the snow had started to fall again. “I lost someone very important to me. …My partner.”

Hank was obviously surprised by this. “I…had no idea. I’m sorry. …What were they like?”

Connor couldn’t help but smile solemnly. “He was wonderful…but I didn’t realize it until after he had died.” His smile faded, his eyes beginning to feel heavy like dark rain clouds. “I had been all about the mission; that’s all that mattered. But…then he died, and I realized how amazing he was and how much I cared about him. My protocol wanted me to carry on with my mission, but…I deviated because I thought there was a chance to save him.”

Hank was silent for a moment before repeating lowly, “I’m so sorry.” He sighed, looking away from Connor’s forlorn face. “God, I’m an asshole for giving you a hard time. You probably just don’t want history to repeat itself. I can relate to that. I don’t let myself get close to anyone because I lost my son.” Connor looked up at him to see that Hank looked tired and melancholy, but he was keeping it together. “His name was Cole…” he continued in a surprisingly calm tone. “Six years old. He died a few years ago. My wife left me shortly after that. We couldn’t fix the rift that his death created between us, so she gave up. I lost everything…”

“Is that why you’re so determined to drink yourself to death?” Connor asked bitterly, but not without sympathy.

With a sigh, Hank nodded. “Yeah… The truth is, I don’t have the guts to blow my head off, so I drink, kill myself a little every day. I was never expecting that anyone would ever care about me again.” He looked to Connor, who bashfully looked at his feet before meeting his gaze again. “Thank you, Connor.”

The android couldn’t help but to stare into the lieutenant’s icy blue eyes. The low light glow of the streetlights cast warm hues onto Hank’s silver hair. He looked so desolate and beautiful, like a modern-day renaissance painting, far away and yet so close. Connor wanted so badly to reach out and touch him, to console and hold him tight. He would give anything just to be able to caress Hank’s hair, to comfort him and whisper to him softly. Finally, he mumbled, “You don’t have to thank me. Caring about you comes easily.”

Connor debated telling Hank the truth. How would the older man react? If he didn’t feel the same way, Connor could just rewind, couldn’t he? He’d used his new power a few times now. Was there a limit to how often he could use it? Hank interrupted his thoughts by stating, “What about you, Connor? You look so human, you sound and act human, but what are you, really? You feel things, say kind things, so what does that make you?”

The android paused. This was a question he had already been asking himself. He knew what he wanted to say, what he wanted to believe, but was that the right answer? The thought made him smile timidly. He looked into Hank’s eyes again, steely blue and steady on him. “I’m anything you want me to be, Lieutenant. I can be your partner, your friend, your confidant…” He decided to be even more truthful. “I would lay down my life for you…”

Hank was obviously shocked by this. “Are you so willing to die?”

Connor shook his head. “I’m not eager to die, if that’s what you mean. Before I became a deviant, when I died, my consciousness was just transferred into another RK800 model. But now…there’s just me. If I die, I die. It’s scary to think about, that I’m mortal now.” Connor half smiled. “But if it were for you, I would gladly die, knowing that you would still carry on, knowing that you would still be okay.”

“Who said I’d be okay if you died?” Hank interjected. He locked up for a moment, then swallowed. “I’ve already lost so much. I know we haven’t known each other long, but I feel like…like I’ve known you for so much longer. I don’t know how to explain it. It’s like déjà vu but different. I know that doesn’t make any goddamn sense.”

Connor wanted so badly to tell Hank the truth, but he was beginning to realize how hard it was to find his voice. There were so many words in his mind that his mouth just wasn’t capable of communicating in that moment. Was this really happening? Was Hank actually saying these warm words? Connor did a quick scan of the lieutenant. Elevated heart rate and blood pressure. Was Hank stressed? Or maybe he was sick? Connor could only hope he wasn’t the reason for his partner’s stress levels. He frowned. “Are you alright?” the android finally asked.

Hank chuckled. “Don’t worry about me, Connor. I’m just drunk and…” With a groan, Hank rubbed his forehead. “Just…have a lot on my mind that the moment.” When he looked down at the android’s dark brown eyes, his heart rate went up even more. “Weird things on my mind.” Connor said nothing, so he sighed, looking down at his coat on the android. “I need another drink,” he muttered.

“I would advise against that, Lieutenant,” Connor said quietly. “You seem to be heavily intoxicated.” He felt himself wanting to get closer to the older officer, and the temptation was hard to resist. Thinking about it for a moment, Connor considered his options. If he messed this up, he could just rewind and act like nothing ever happened. The android’s body felt searing hot as he reached out, touching the lieutenant’s hand on the seat next to him. If this didn’t work, he would just go back and set things straight. The officer’s skin was warm and smooth under his fingertips. When he saw the look of surprise on Hank’s face, he quickly pulled his hand away as if he’d been burned. “I…I’m sorry.” There was an awkward silence between them before Connor reached for his door handle.

The android was about to try rewinding when the detective grabbed his hand. “No.” Connor jumped at the feeling, his eyes darting to Hank’s face, his half-lidded, deep blue eyes. The older man looked collected, but his heart was still racing. “It’s okay,” came his gruff voice. Connor’s hand felt so delicate in the larger man’s grasp. Hank’s eyebrows raised slightly. “You’re…blushing.” Connor’s free hand reached up to his face, which was burning. “So, androids can blush, huh?” Hank half smiled. “It’s blue, too. Makes sense, with the blue blood.”

Connor began to panic. Why was Hank acting like this? Was he having romantic thoughts, too? No, Hank despised androids. He could never feel attraction for an android. That was what Connor told himself, though it was slightly hard to believe, what with how close the lieutenant was now, still holding his hand. Connor suddenly wondered what Hank’s hair felt like, what it smelled like. He assumed it would smell similar to the jacket, only more potent. He discovered the urge to bury his face in the crook of Hank’s neck, feel his warmth, take in his scent, feel his silver hair against his face. Without thinking, the android found himself reaching out for the other man’s hair slowly with his free hand.

Hank caught Connor’s hand before he could touch the detective’s face, worrying the android for a second. “Connor…” When Hank saw his pleading eyes, however, he slowly relaxed his grip, allowing Connor to touch his hair. His eyes fell closed, his fingers clasping onto the android’s arm.

Connor’s fingers entwined in Hank’s long, gray hair gently as he felt the lock of hair between his fingers. It was softer than he’d imagined it would be, slightly damp from the snow. With a lump in his throat, the android asked, “I feel like I’m dreaming. Is this what dreaming is like?”

The older man chuckled. “I would hope you dream about things nicer than me.” Hank’s hand that wasn’t on Connor’s arm reached up to feel the android’s soft cheek. As Connor leaned into his touch, humming softly, Hank added, “I must be the one dreaming.”

“What do you typically dream about?” Connor asked in a whisper.

Shaking his head, Hank replied, “I normally only have nightmares… It’s nice to dream for once." As he said this, both his hands reached forward, peeling the jacket off Connor’s shoulders, making the android shudder. “Are you cold?” he asked deep and gravely.

“No, I-” Connor stammered nervously. “I don’t know what’s happening, Lieutenant. This is something I haven’t experienced before.”

Hank leaned forward, his hands roaming down to Connor’s hips. Connor couldn’t help the panicked whimper that escaped him when the lieutenant’s beard tickled his neck. “Yeah, this is new to me, too,” was his reply, low and dark, lips grazing Connor's hot skin.

The android didn’t understand what was happening. What had changed? The first time he met Lieutenant Anderson, he’d been rude, and even racist against androids. Now, he could feel the older man’s mouth hovering over his throat. Had Connor somehow forced Hank into this? It was like the older man was under a spell. “Mmm,” Connor hummed awkwardly, his hands on Hank’s shoulders. “Are you sure you aren’t just really drunk?”

Hank laughed against his neck. “I _am_ really drunk.” He pulled back to look into Connor’s eyes. “I wouldn’t have the guts to do this sober.” That made the android smile, breathing out a little giggle. Hank moved one of his hands up to capture Connor’s chin between his thumb and index finger. “C’mere,” he muttered, slowly pulling the android into a kiss.

Connor couldn’t help the surprised gasp that left his mouth. He pulled away for a second to breathe out, “Hank…” before the older man was capturing his lips once more. The android leaned in, wrapping his arms around Hank’s neck, fingers threaded through his hair.

Hank pulled away about a minute later, whispering, “Wait, let’s go to my house.” Connor nodded. “Will you drive?” Connor nodded again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: See you next time (¬‿¬)


End file.
